


Shattered

by JoshThePleb



Series: Shattered [1]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: F/F, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-12
Updated: 2019-10-12
Packaged: 2020-12-09 16:02:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 101,395
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20997518
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JoshThePleb/pseuds/JoshThePleb
Summary: Percy's eyes snapped open. He was no longer in the throne room... He wasn't even on Olympus, he was pretty sure. He was in the back seat of his mom's car, and he was shorter. He looked around himself, Thalia and Annabeth were soundly asleep, on either side of him, and his mom was focused on the snow covered road. The weird thing was, all of them looked younger.(or)Percy gets thrown back in time





	1. Titan's Curse Arc

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone! 
> 
> Josh here bringing you the first ever chapter of my brand-spanking-new story, Shattered!  
Do note, that this particular author's note is being written nearly three years into the life cycle of this story which can be found originally posted on fanfiction.net.
> 
> Moving on, let me just give you guys a small little peek into where you can expect this story to head. And yes I can confidently tell you this because I've literally lived through writing them already in the past (for me, at least, it gonna be in the future for all you new peeps xD)  
So yeah, what can you expect?
> 
> Well, first off, let me just begin with the extremely obvious: Time-travel. This story revolves around the fact that Percy Jackson has travelled into the past (Well the story revolves around that plot point in the first arc, before I diverge out into more original content)
> 
> Secondly, some things that occur in the future may be deemed slightly unsettling to a minority of you so discretion is advised, but not enforced. If you read something that you did not expect, do not blame me, the author.
> 
> Speaking of things to expect, here is a warning to any homophobe that may be out there and wishes to flame my story for their own personal opinion on the matter: Do not bother bringing it up to me. I frankly do not give a flying rat's arse about what you think. This is fanfiction, for people to express their own views, not for lesser-minded people leaving illogical statements that may result in the reduction of the quality of content coming from me, so please, if not for my sake, then shut your trap so that the others may enjoy.  
So, that's it. Those are the three things that one must remember when reading this story.
> 
> Also, I've just put all 60-ish chapters in this one work as two chapters because I couldn't be bothered to split it individually by chapters again *sweats*
> 
> Also, also, If you guys wanna read this story with a little more banter between me and my beta-readers or even if you wish to read it broken down into chapters hop on ahead to fanfiction and look me up, shouldn't be too hard to find me!
> 
> JoshThePleb signing out,
> 
> BAI!

________________________________________  
Chapter 1: Time  
________________________________________  
The Titan Lord advanced with blinding speed. Grover- brave, stupid satyr that he was, tried to protect Percy, but Kronos tossed him aside like a rag doll.  
Percy sidestepped and jabbed under the titan's guard. It was a good trick. Unfortunately, Luke knew it. He countered the strike and disarmed him using one of the first moves he'd ever taught Percy. Riptide skittered across the ground and fell straight into the open fissure.  
"STOP!" Annabeth's voice came from nowhere.  
Kronos whirled to face her and slashed with Backbiter, but somehow Annabeth caught the strike on her dagger hilt. It was a move only the quickest and most skilled knife fighter could've managed, which the blonde daughter of Athena certainly was. She stepped in closer for leverage, their blades crossed, and for a moment she stood face-to-face with the Titan lord, holding him at a standstill.  
Percy was left with no opportunity to gawk at the scene before him though, for Annabeth raised her voice yet again to speak, to try and talk some sense into who was once her friend.  
"Luke," she said, gritting her teeth, "I understand now. You have to trust me."  
Kronos roared in outrage. "Luke Castellan is dead! His body will burn away as I assume my true form!"  
Percy tried to move, but his body was frozen again. How could Annabeth, battered and half dead with exhaustion, have the strength to fight a Titan like Kronos?  
Kronos pushed against her, trying to dislodge his blade, but she held him in check, her arms trembling as he forced his sword down toward her neck.  
"Your mother," Annabeth grunted. "She saw your fate."  
"Service to Kronos!" the Titan roared. "This is my fate."  
"No!" Annabeth insisted. Her stormy grey eyes were tearing up, but Percy didn't know if it was from sadness or pain. Probably an amalgamation of the two emotions. "That's not the end, Luke. The prophecy: she saw what you would do. It applies to you!"  
"I will crush you, child!" The titan bellowed, his golden eyes glistening with rage.  
"You won't," Annabeth said. "You promised. You're holding Kronos back even now."  
"LIES!" Kronos pushed again, and this time Annabeth lost her balance. With his free hand, Kronos struck her face, and she slid backward.  
Percy summoned all of his will. He managed to rise, but it was like holding the weight of the sky again.  
Kronos loomed over Annabeth, his sword raised.  
Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth. She croaked, "Family, Luke. You promised."  
Percy took a painful step forward. Grover was back on his feet, over by the throne of Hera, but he seemed to be struggling to move as well. Before either of them could get anywhere close to Annabeth, Kronos staggered.  
He stared at the bronze knife in Annabeth's hand, the blood on her face. "Promise."  
Then he gasped like he couldn't get air. "Annabeth..." But it wasn't the Titan's voice. It was Luke's. He stumbled forward like he couldn't control his own body. "You're bleeding…"  
Percy staggered to his feet, weakly he stumbled towards the two. Kronos' face was conflicted; his eyes flickered from gold to blue, and then back again.  
Possession was ripped away from the son of Hermes, "Luke Castellan is dead" the titan lord bellowed and struck Annabeth with at flat of his blade, knocking over.  
Percy was running out of energy, and time. It seemed like whatever he tried to do, Kronos was always, ALWAYS one step ahead of him. Panic began to settle within him, he was going to lose. He was going to fail those who put their trust in him. He was going to lose. His glare hardened. No. He wasn't about to just give up. Mustering the last of his strength, a final ditch effort, the son of Poseidon shakily got on his feet, Riptide firmly in his right hand. He took a sharp intake of air. This was his last chance, he was grasping for straws, but it was all he had left in him.  
He ran. He ran towards the titan with his sword in his hand. The sword of Zoe Nightshade.  
Time seemed to slow to a crawl as the demigod charged straight at the Titan Lord. Kronos spun around, Backbiter in hand, striking the bronze blade with all his strength. Kronos expected the blade to be disarmed from his battered and bruised foe, clatter uselessly to the ground, but something else happened...  
Small cracks began to appear on both Riptide and Backbiter, the epicenter of the rift being the point of contact between the two blades. The fissure began to slowly spread towards the rest of the blades. Time seemed to be at both a crawl and a sprint for the son of Poseidon. On one hand the fractures spread blisteringly slowly and painfully, but on the other hand, it seemed to be over far too quickly, nearly in an instant.  
There was a pregnant pause in the air as the two foes looked on in complete astonishment at what had just happened. Each of their blades were meant to be nigh unbreakable, one laced with the essence of a dying immortal, and the other being the reincarnation of a titan's symbol of power. They couldn't simply... Break.  
It was over just as soon as it started, the blades crumbled to the Olympian floor. The last thing Percy was able to make out before losing awareness was a bright flash of light and then, surprisingly an ethereal image of Zoe Nightshade embracing his form.  
________________________________________  
Percy's eyes didn't snap open. In fact, his eyelids felt so heavy. All he wanted to do was keep them closed and sleep forever. Perhaps he could see that Zoe Nightshade ghost that had hugged him as he died. Percy's mind reeled back.  
This time, his eyed did snap open.  
He wasn't even on Olympus, he was pretty sure.  
He was in the back seat of his mom's car. He tried to stretch his limbs, but found himself restrained by the seatbelt that was wrapped across his torso. He looked down at his feet. From what he could tell, he was shorter. He looked around himself, Thalia and Annabeth were soundly asleep, on either side of him, and his mom was focused on the snow-covered road. The weird thing was, all of them looked younger. Especially his mother, she hadn't looked that way since...  
Percy's eyed widened.  
Percy glanced out of the window, they were on the freeway, it was probably not more than ten minutes to dusk. Percy was highly confused; the last thing he remembered was...  
He frantically checked his pockets; Riptide was safely tucked away in his jeans. He let out a sigh of relief, whatever he was going through; at least he would have his trusty pen with him.  
Percy leaned back, closing his eyes; he tried to wrap his mind around what was happening to him. Unfortunately, he had no answer. Slowly, he began to doze off into another fitful slumber.  
________________________________________  
By the time Sally pulled over, Thalia and Annabeth were awake and ready to go. Thalia wiped the fog off the car window and peered outside.  
"Oh, yeah. This'll be fun." Percy could practically feel the déjà vu in that sentence. He had been awoken by the daughter of Zeus a few minutes earlier in anticipation for their (sort of) quest.  
Westover Hall looked exactly like he remembered; it was still like an evil knight's castle. It was all black stone, with towers and slit windows and a big set of wooden double doors. It stood on a snowy cliff overlooking this big frosty forest on one side and the gray churning ocean on the other.  
"Are you sure you don't want me to wait?" his mother asked.  
"No, thanks, Mom," he repeated, whatever was going on, he decided to say exactly what he said last time... That he had lived it?  
"I don't know how long it will take, mom. We'll be okay."  
Percy mentally scoffed, yeah that wasn't the case.  
"But how will you get back? I'm worried, Percy."  
Percy couldn't be more confused. He could only come up with one probable explanation, but he needed more proof...  
"It's okay, Ms. Jackson." Annabeth smiled reassuringly. Her blond hair was tucked into a ski cap and her gray eyes were the same color as the ocean. "We'll keep him out of trouble."  
Exactly the same as the previous time... Maybe his hypothesis could hold some truth?  
His mom seemed to relax a little at his words of reassurement.  
"All right, dears," Sally said. "Do you have everything you need?"  
"Yes, Ms. Jackson," Thalia said. "Thanks for the ride."  
"Extra sweaters? You have my cell phone number?"  
"Mom—" He knew he had to interject; it seemed to work out in the end the last time...  
But he wondered how but could he risk changing... "What about your ambrosia and nectar, Percy? And a golden drachma in case you need to contact camp?"  
"Mom we'll be fine!" Percy urged his teammates into the ominous boarding school. Annabeth and Thalia followed him outside the car.  
The wind blew straight through his coat like ice daggers. Once his mother's car was out of sight, Thalia said, "Your mom is so cool, Percy."  
"Yeah..." he admitted, a mall smile growing on his expression, "She is pretty cool..." he didn't dare ask about her mother, he already all he needed to know about Beryl Grace anyway...  
"We'd better get inside," Annabeth interrupted. "Grover will be waiting." Thalia looked at the castle and shivered. "You're right. I wonder what he found here that made him send the distress call."  
Percy stared up at the dark towers of Westover Hall. "Nothing good," that, if things still go down the same way, he knew without a fraction of a doubt.

________________________________________  
Chapter 2: Dance  
________________________________________  
The oak doors of the medieval castle-looking compound groaned open, and the three demigods stepped into the entry hall in a swirl of snow.  
The inside of the boarding school was just as terrifying as Percy remembered, the place was huge. The walls were lined with battle flags and weapon displays: antique rifles, battle axes, and a bunch of other stuff. Thalia was rubbing her silver bracelet apprehensively, her favorite magic item, she fully expected a fight. Annabeth started to say,  
"I wonder where—" The doors slammed shut behind us. "Oo-kay," Percy mumbled, sticking to character, entirely unsure of what he was to make of his situation. He decided that sticking with how events had gone down in the past would be the most logically sound decision.  
"Guess we'll stay awhile."  
They could hear music echoing from the other end of the hall. It sounded like dance music. Of course, Percy already knew where the di Angelo kids would be located...  
Percy's breath hitched...  
Bianca and Zoe were still alive!  
Percy's mind began to swirl with emotions, thoughts and plans. He might not have had clear idea of what was happening to him, but he had a clear resolution in mind. Bianca Di Angelo and Zoe Nightshade were not going to die. Not when he planned to do something about it.  
The demigods stashed their overnight bags behind a pillar and started down the hall. They hadn't gone very far when Percy heard footsteps on the stone floor, and a man and woman marched out of the shadows to intercept them.  
They both had short gray hair and black military-style uniforms with a red trim. The woman had a wispy mustache, and the guy was clean-shaven, just like last time. They both walked stiffly, like they had broomsticks taped to their spines. "Well?" the woman demanded. "What are you doing here?"  
Percy smirked as a pretty cool idea hit him. Taking a step forward, he snapped his fingers. Percy could feel a gust of wind ripple from his hand, washing over all of them, making the banners rustle on the walls  
"Oh, but we're not visitors, sir," Percy said, using the same words Thalia would've had he not stepped up and show off a little. "We go to school here. You remember: I'm Percy. And this is Annabeth and Thalia. We're in the eighth grade."  
The male teacher narrowed his heterochromic eyes. Of course, Percy knew that the manticore could see through the ripple in the mist he had created, but it had worked the last time and besides... Manipulating the mist was pretty badass. He could remember how surprised he was when Thalia had done the same thing the last time, he had experienced these events  
He looked at his colleague. "Ms. Gottschalk, do you know these students?"  
Percy had to bite back his laughter, he had completely forgotten about Ms. Got Chalk.  
The woman blinked, like someone had just woken her up from a trance. "I… yes. I believe I do, sir." She frowned at us. "Annabeth. Thalia. Percy. What are you doing away from the gymnasium?"  
Before they could answer, Percy heard more footsteps, and Grover ran up, breathless. "You made it! You—"  
He stopped short when he saw the teachers. "Oh, Mrs. Gottschalk. Dr. Thorn! I, uh—"  
"What is it, Mr. Underwood?" said the man. His tone made it clear that he detested Grover. "What do you mean, they made it? These students live here."  
Percy chuckled under his breath, he had almost forgotten that Grover was a total klutz before he was burdened with the responsibilities if the lord of the wild, not that the satyr was much different in  
Grover swallowed. "Yes, sir. Of course, Dr. Thorn. I just meant, I'm so glad they made… the punch for the dance! The punch is great. And they made it!"  
Percy almost facepalmed at how lame the excuse was.  
Mrs. Gottschalk interjected dreamily, "Yes, the punch is excellent. Now run along, all of you. You are not to leave the gymnasium again!"  
They didn't wait to be told twice. They left with a lot of "Yes, ma'ams" and "Yes, sirs" and a couple of salutes, just because it seemed like the fun thing to do.  
Grover hustled us down the hall in the direction of the music.  
As we walked further away from the teachers, Annabeth leaned in and asked in a low voice, "How did you do that finger-snap thing?"  
"You mean the Mist? Hasn't Chiron shown you how to do that yet?"  
Percy almost burst out laughing at Annabeth's sour expression. He missed Thalia's narrowed eyes aimed at him. Probably mad that he stole her spotlight...  
"That was close!" Grover said. "Thank the gods you got here!"  
Annabeth and Thalia both hugged Grover. Percy gave him a big high five.  
"So, what's this big emergency?" Percy asked, knowing full well, but still putting up the charade.  
Grover took a deep breath. "I found two."  
"Two half-bloods?" Thalia asked, amazed. "Here?"  
Grover nodded.  
"A brother and a sister," he said. "They're ten and twelve. I don't know their parentage, but they're strong. We're running out of time, though. I need help."  
"Monsters?"  
One." Grover looked nervous. "He suspects. I don't think he's positive yet, but this is the last day of term. I'm sure he won't let them leave campus without finding out. It may be our last chance! Every time I try to get close to them, he's always there, blocking me. I don't know what to do!"  
Right," Thalia said, taking command over the situation. "These half-bloods are at the dance?"  
Grover nodded.  
"Then let's dance," Thalia said. "Who's the monster?"  
"Oh," Grover said, and looked around nervously. "You just met him. The vice principal, Dr. Thorn."  
________________________________________  
There were black and red balloons all over the gym floor, and guys were kicking them in each other’s faces, or trying to strangle each other with the crepe-paper streamers taped to the walls. Girls moved around in football huddles, the way they always do, wearing lots of makeup and spaghetti-strap tops and brightly colored pants and shoes that looked like torture devices. Every once in a while, they'd surround some poor guy like a pack of piranhas, shrieking and giggling, and when they finally moved on, the guy would have ribbons in his hair and a bunch of lipstick graffiti all over his face. Some of the older guys looked more like me—uncomfortable, hanging out at the edges of the gym and trying to hide, like any minute they might have to fight for their lives.  
But something was out of place, off to the side were three old... Ancient looking women, Percy could recognize them instantly.  
Time began to slow down to a crawl giving Percy an insane sense of deja vu. His fight with Kronos still firmly imprinted into his memory.  
Percy approached the three deities. Bowing low, but not breaking eye-contact, he spoke, "Lady Fates"  
"Rise hero" they spoke in unison. Before he could ask them about what was going on, they cut him off,  
"It seems you have been given a second chance hero" came the crooked voice of Clotho.  
"Use it wisely" continued Lachesis.  
"Or suffer the consequences" finished Atropos, as the three of them faded out of existence, leaving Percy staring at an empty bench.  
Percy began to contemplate what the three deities had told him. Had he been sent back in time, given a second chance as they had said. Regardless, he was going to try his best to not lost the war again this time.  
"There they are." Grover nodded toward a couple of younger kids arguing in the bleachers. "Bianca and Nico di Angelo"  
Percy couldn't help but smile at the two... His expression turned grim, he was going to save Bianca... Damn the consequences.  
Bianca wore a floppy green cap, like she was trying to hide her face. They both had dark silky hair and olive skin, and they used their hands a lot as they were shuffling his Mythomagic cards. His sister seemed to be scolding him about something. She kept looking around like she sensed something was wrong. She was right of course...  
Annabeth said, "Do they… I mean, have you told them?"  
Grover shook his head. "You know how it is. That could put them in more danger. Once they realize who they are, their scent becomes stronger."  
"So, let's grab them and get out of here," Percy said.  
He started forward, but Thalia put her hand on his shoulder. The vice principal, Dr. Thorn, had slipped out of a doorway near the bleachers and was standing near the di Angelo siblings. He nodded coldly in our direction. His blue eye seemed to glow.  
Of course, he hadn't been fooled by the mist...  
Don't look at the kids," Thalia ordered. "We have to wait for a chance to get them. We need to pretend we're not interested in them. Throw him off the scent."  
"How?"  
"We're three powerful half-bloods. Our presence should confuse him. Mingle. Act natural. Do some dancing. But keep an eye on those kids."  
"Dancing?" Annabeth asked.  
Thalia nodded. She cocked her ear to the music and made a face. "Ugh. Who chose the Jesse McCartney?"  
Grover looked hurt. "I did."  
"Oh, my gods, Grover. That is so lame. Can't you play, like, Green Day or something?"  
"Green who?"  
"Never mind. Let's dance."  
"But I can't dance!"  
"You can if I'm leading," Annabeth said. "Come on, Grover."  
Grover yelped as Annabeth grabbed his hand and led him onto the dance floor. This confused Percy, Thalia was supposed to be the one who dragged Percy away, leaving him awkwardly standing next to his crush at the time... But with time, his crush on the blonde daughter if Athena had dimmed down considerably. Now he only thought of Annabeth as a very close friend. One of his best friends.  
Thalia narrowed her eyes, glaring slightly at the son of Poseidon.  
"What?" Percy asked.  
"The trick with the mist... Chiron didn't teach it to you." It wasn't a question.  
Percy gulped, he hadn't thought of what would've happened if he hadn't gone and showed off. Now he had to think of something, and fast.  
"Umm... My mom taught me?" It sounded lame even to himself.  
Thalia raised her eyebrow, not believing a word that spluttered out of his mouth.  
"My- uhh- dad taught her the trick and she taught me" he was lying through his teeth but he hoped that she didn't catch his bluff.  
Fortunately, the lie seemed to work and Thalia's hard expression dissipated.  
"So..." Percy needed an ice breaker, "How's that all-girls school treating you"  
She shrugged her shoulders, "Meh... It’s okay I guess..." Percy could remember how much Annabeth was fishing about the school the last time around, glancing at the girl and the satyr, it was obvious that Annabeth was telling Grover about her school at the very moment.  
Glancing at Nico and Bianca, Percy noticed Dr. Thorn stalking away from the dance, the two of them in tow.  
Determined to not make the same mistake again, instead of going after them alone, he notified Thalia. They frantically looked around, but Annabeth and Grover were nowhere to be seen.  
He knew where the Manticore was going to take the kids so, grabbing Thalia by the wrist, he sprinted out back, he wouldn't be alone with the Manticore, even with his two years of extra training, the beast was still a formidable foe.  
Percy finally stopped sprinting when they reached where he knew the Manticore would take the children. He had to make a plan... He knew he wouldn't have to take the Manticore down, he only had to stall the beast until the hunters arrive.  
Percy could see a dark silhouette of Dr. Thorn ad the two children of Hades in the shadows.  
Taking in a gulp of breath, Percy uncapped riptide and expanded his shield. Thalia, also noticing the three, expanded Aegis and her electric spear, which Percy had affectionately dubbed 'Shock Therapy"... Not that he'd ever tell her that...  
Percy activated his emphatic link with Grover, sending out a S.O.S.  
He knew the satyr would arrive with Annabeth any moment.  
Just as the manticore was within range, Percy and Thalia charged, their teamwork was flawless, as though they were fighting together for years... Which was true in Percy's case.  
Percy flanked the beast from the left while Thalia charged from the right, her spear arced with pale blue electricity. The daughter of Zeus initiated the fight, sending a bolt of lightning at the Manticore, causing him to yelp in pain.  
"Nico! Bianca!" Percy yelled out at them, causing them to widen their eyes, "Run!"  
The two ran away from the Manticore, towards the back gate of Westover Hall. They almost ran into Annabeth and Grover.  
"Fools!" The Manticore growled, dropping his guise as a human, turning into his true form.  
He shot two spikes at Percy, both of which he easily dodged. Percy sliced with Riptide, only for the Manticore to swerve out of the way.  
It swung its tail at the half blood, catching him off guard, knocking his sword from his hand.  
Percy cursed under his breath and slammed the Manticore with Tyson's shield as he rolled out of the way if another tail strike.  
Suddenly a tune began to fill the air, Grover was playing his reed pipes. Thick vines arose from the ground, causing the beast to stumble.  
Growling in frustration, the Manticore began to frantically shoot spikes in all directions.  
"A manticore!" Annabeth said, now visible. Her magical New York Yankees cap had come off when she'd plowed into us.  
"Who are you people?" Bianca di Angelo demanded. "And what is that?"  
"A manticore?" Nico gasped. "He's got three thousand attack power and plus five to saving throws!"  
The manticore clawed Grover's magic weeds to shreds then turned toward the half-bloods with a snarl.  
"Get down!" Annabeth pushed the di Angelos flat into the snow.  
Thalia yelled from across the field. She charged the monster, and for a second, Percy thought she would run him through. But then there was a thunderous noise and a blaze of light from behind them. The helicopter appeared out of the mist, hovering just beyond the cliffs. It was a sleek black military-style gunship, with attachments on the sides that looked like laser-guided rockets.  
The searchlights blinded Thalia, and the manticore swatted her away with its tail. Her shield flew off into the snow. Her spear flew in the other direction.  
Dr. Thorn growled, “do you see hopeless it is? Yield, little heroes."  
We were trapped between a monster and a fully armed helicopter.  
"We have no chance." Is what Percy would have thought if he didn't know what was about to happen.  
A clear, piercing sound: the call of a hunting horn blows in the woods. Percy tried his best to hide the smirk that was threatening to break out.  
Right on time...  
The manticore froze. For a moment, no one moved. There was only the swirl of snow and wind and the chopping of the helicopter blades.  
"No," Dr. Thorn said. "It cannot be—"  
His sentence was cut short when something shot past Percy like a streak of moonlight. A glowing silver arrow sprouted from Dr. Thorn's shoulder.  
He staggered backward, wailing in agony.  
"Curse you!" Thorn cried. He unleashed his spikes, dozens of them at once, into the woods where the arrow had come from, but just as fast, silvery arrows shot back in reply. The arrows had intercepted the thorns in midair and sliced them in two. The two halves uselessly clattering to the ground.  
The manticore pulled the arrow out of his shoulder with a howl of pain. His breathing was heavy and labored.  
Then the archers came from the woods. They were girls, about a dozen of them. The youngest was maybe ten. The oldest, about sixteen, like Percy would have been. They wore silvery ski parkas and jeans, and they were all armed with bows. They advanced on the manticore with determined expressions.  
The Hunters of Artemis had arrived...

________________________________________  
Chapter 3: Zoe  
________________________________________  
Zoe didn't look good. She was shivering, and the faint glow that usually hung around her was fading.  
"Can't you heal her with magic?" Percy frantically asked Artemis. "I mean… you're a goddess."  
Artemis looked troubled. "Life is a fragile thing, Percy. If the Fates will the string to be cut, there is little I can do. But I can try."  
She tried to set her hand on Zoe's side, but Zoe gripped her wrist. She looked into the goddess's eyes, and some kind of understanding passed between them.  
"Have I… served thee well?" Zoe whispered.  
"With great honor," Artemis said softly. "The finest of my attendants."  
Zoe's face relaxed. "Rest. At last."  
"I can try to heal the poison, my brave one."  
But in that moment, Zoe knew it wasn't just the poison that was killing her. It was her father's final blow. Zoe had known all along that the Oracle's prophecy was about her: she would die by a parent's hand. And yet she'd taken the quest anyway. She had chosen to save him, and Atlas's fury had broken her inside.  
She saw Thalia, and took her hand.  
"I am sorry we argued," Zoe said. "We could have been sisters."  
"It's my fault," Thalia said, blinking hard. "You were right about Luke, about heroes, men—everything."  
"Perhaps not all men," Zoe murmured. She smiled weakly at the son of Poseidon. "Do you still have the sword, Percy?"  
He couldn't speak, but he brought out Riptide and put the pen in her hand. She grasped it contentedly. "You spoke the truth, Percy Jackson. You are nothing like… like Hercules. I am honored that you carry this sword."  
A shudder ran through her body.  
"Zoe—" Percy said.  
"Stars," she whispered. "I can see the stars again, my lady."  
A tear trickled down Artemis's cheek. "Yes, my brave one. They are beautiful tonight."  
"Stars," Zoe repeated. Her eyes fixed on the night sky. And she did not move again.  
________________________________________  
When Zoe opened her eyes, she expected to find herself in Elysium, or at the very least somewhere else in the Underworld. Charon's lair perhaps?  
But no, she wasn't there... She was in... Her tent?  
She was lying on her own bed, in her hunters’ uniform. Getting off the mattress, the huntress examined herself. She was in perfect condition... She couldn't feel the excruciatingly painful claw marks on her torso, neither could she feel the venomous toxin course through her blood. It was almost like she had never experienced her memories...  
Praying to the gods that the whole scenario wasn't simply an elaborate trick, serving as punishment for all of her wrongdoings to the opposite sex, Zoe opened her tent flap gingerly, only to be greeted by an incredible normalcy.  
Her sisters were milling about their business, a few sharpening their arrows, a few practicing with their bows and/or hunting knives. A couple were gutting and cleaning a stag, probably preparing it to be cooked for dinner.  
Her lady Artemis was nowhere to be found, unfortunately. Zoe confusedly wandered around the camp, looking to find something that was out of the ordinary. Glancing up at the sky, Zoe could tell that it was probably around six in the evening. The sun was low in the sky, but not completely within the horizon. The moon and stars were visible, but not as bright as they could be.  
A silver flash broke the reincarnated huntress from her musing. It was her lady Artemis.  
"I have received orders from Olympus, we are to hunt and capture the Manticore. We have gained some intel that says that the Manticore is connected with Kronos, so my father has commanded that we capture and interrogation the beast."  
Déjà vu hit Zoe with a hammer, that was the exact same mission her and her sisters had received before the quest began a few days prior. Zoe could only thing of one thing... Either she suddenly could predict the future, which was highly unlikely... Or she had traveled back in time!  
Which was equally as unlikely... But what else could explain what was going on?  
"The last sighting of the Manticore was in Bar Harbor, by a Satyr named Grover Underwood." Artemis continued. Zoe could remember the satyr, he was one of the members of her final quest.  
Zoe idly wondered if she was fated to die or if fate could spare her... After all, what was the point in traveling in time, if she was only to die a few days later?  
Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Zoe focused on repacking her tent, and sharpening her blunt arrows to a deadly precision.  
Once all of the hunters were stocked, Artemis flashed the whole lot to a forest in Bar Harbor. It was probably for the best, seeing as they were camped all the way over in Colorado when they had been tasked with the capture of the Manticore. Zoe looked around, it was nearly sunset.  
Setting up camp, Artemis commanded the hunters into formation, and thus began their search.  
In all honesty, it didn't take long for the hunters to find the beast they were trailing...  
Partially because Zoe already knew exactly where the Manticore was... Not that anyone else knew that she knew, she simply subtly led the way straight to the Manticore.  
Zoe could see the campers from within the underbrush, they were trapped between the Manticore and an armored helicopter... Just like she remembered.  
Zoe signaled for the hunting horn to be blown. A shrill piercing sound that broke the silence of the forest.  
The manticore froze. For a moment, no one moved. There was only the swirl of snow and wind and the chopping of the helicopter blades.  
"No," The beast said. "It cannot be—"  
His sentence was cut short when Zoe released her knocked arrow like a streak of moonlight. A glowing silver arrow sprouted from the Manticore's shoulder.  
He staggered backward, wailing in agony.  
"Curse you!" He cried, unleashing his spikes, dozens of them at once, into the woods where the arrow had come from, but just as fast, silvery arrows shot back in reply. The arrows had intercepted the thorns in midair and sliced them cleanly in half.  
The manticore pulled the arrow out of his shoulder with a howl of pain. His breathing was heavy. Zoe observed as Percy tried to swipe at him with his sword, but he wasn't as injured as he looked. He dodged the demigod's attack and slammed his tail into his shield, knocking him aside.  
That was when they decided to make their entrance.  
"The Hunters!" Annabeth cried.  
Next to Percy, Thalia muttered, "Oh, wonderful."  
Zoe stepped forward with her bow drawn.  
"Permission to kill, my lady?"  
She kept her eyes on the manticore.  
The monster wailed. "This is not fair! Direct interference! It is against the Ancient Laws."  
"Not so," her Lady, Artemis said, "The hunting of all wild beasts is within my sphere. And you, foul creature, are a wild beast." She looked at the older girl with the circlet. "Zoe, permission granted."  
The manticore growled. "If I cannot have these alive, I shall have them dead!"  
He lunged at Thalia and Percy, knowing they were weak and dazed.  
"No.'" Annabeth yelled, and she charged at the monster.  
"Get back, half-blood!" Zoe yelled, "Get out of the line of fire!"  
She remembered what happened last time and she didn't want a repeat of what happened, maybe the quest could be avoided? Probably not...  
But Annabeth leaped onto the monster's back and drove her knife into its mane. The manticore howled, turning in circles with his tail flailing as Annabeth hung on for dear life.  
"Fire!" Zoe ordered. She had to order her sisters to fire at the blonde maiden, but she knew that she would remain unharmed from the arrows.  
Surprisingly Percy did not yell at them to stop like he had in the... Past? Zoe's eyes met with the sea green orbs of the son of Poseidon. His eyes were calm, not in the absolute distress he had been the previous time. His eyes also seemed to hold a lot more weight that the last time. It seemed as though some of the naivete of the boy had magically disappeared.  
Perhaps... Perhaps she wasn't the only one to be sent into the past. The thought sent her into a state of bliss.  
The Hunters let their arrows fly. The first caught the manticore in the neck. Another hit his chest. The manticore staggered backward, wailing, "This is not the end, Huntress! You shall pay!"  
And before anyone could react, the monster, with Annabeth still on his back, tried to leap over the cliff and tumble into the darkness.  
At least, that was what was supposed to happen, but Percy was standing at the exact place the Manticore had been targeting to jump off of... Which was certainly not according to her memory.  
Maybe she was in a parallel reality that altered certain events? But that was about as likely as the time travel scenario she had already created in her head...  
Percy tackled the Manticore before the beast could react, and knocked Annabeth off of its back. But want happened next went completely the other way of what was supposed to happen... The Manticore leaped off of the cliff, but had Percy hanging on instead.  
Zoe started to run after them to the cliff side, but there was a snap-snap-snap from the helicopter—the sound of gunfire.  
Most of the Hunters scattered as tiny holes appeared in the snow at their feet, but her Lady Artemis just looked up calmly at the helicopter.  
"Mortals," she announced, "are not allowed to witness my hunt."  
She thrust out her hand, and the helicopter dissolved into a flock of birds—ravens, which scattered into the night.

________________________________________  
Chapter 4: Fall  
________________________________________  
Zoe Nightshade." Thalia's voice trembled with anger. "Perfect timing, as usual."  
Zoe scanned the rest of the group, even though she knew each of them by name, she spoke. "Four half-bloods and a satyr, my lady."  
"Yes," the younger girl said. "Some of Chiron's campers, I see."  
"Percy!" Annabeth yelled. "You have to let us save him!"  
The auburn-haired goddess turned toward her. "I'm sorry, Annabeth Chase, but your friend is beyond help."  
She tried to struggle to her feet, but a couple of the girls held her down.  
"You are in no condition to be hurling yourself off cliffs," the auburn-haired goddess said.  
"Let me go!" She demanded. "Who do you think you are?" Zoe almost burst out laughing, for a daughter of Athena, she clearly wasn't analyzing the situation properly... Though she supposed that might have had to do with the fact that Percy was sent hurling off a cliff side into the depths of the ocean...  
Zoe's eyes widened.  
Phoebe stepped forward as if to smack her.  
"No," the other girl ordered. "I sense no disrespect, Phoebe. She is simply distraught. She does not understand."  
The goddess looked at Annabeth, her eyes colder and brighter than the winter moon. "I am Artemis," she said. "Goddess of the Hunt."  
Annabeth immediately calmed down, but she said nothing but, "I'm sorry My Lady..."  
Grover gasped, then knelt hastily in the snow and started yammering, "Thank you, Lady Artemis! You're so… you're so… Wow!"  
"Get up, goat boy!" Thalia snapped. "We have other things to worry about. Percy is gone!"  
"Whoa," Bianca di Angelo said. "Hold up. Time out.  
Everybody looked at her. She pointed her finger at all of them in turn, like she was trying to connect the dots. "Who… who are you people?"  
Artemis's expression softened. “It might be a better question, my dear girl, to ask who are you! Who are your parents?  
Bianca glanced nervously at her brother, who was still staring in awe at Artemis.  
Our parents are dead," Bianca said. "We're orphans. There's a bank trust that pays for our school, but…"  
She faltered. Zoe guessed she could tell from their faces that they didn't believe her.  
"What?" she demanded. "I'm telling the truth."  
Zoe sneaked over to the cliff side drowning out the rest if the discussion, hopefully not appearing too desperate, The Manticore was nowhere to be seen...  
But she could see the faint silhouette of the son of Poseidon on the surface if the water! He must have let go of the Manticore before it had teleported away.  
Zoe couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief, which was only noticed by Thalia. The daughter of Zeus gave Zoe a look which went unnoticed by everyone.  
"My Lady, P- the boy is alive!" Zoe actually had to bite her tongue to not call him by his name. Fortunately, her small slip went by unnoticed.  
Artemis peered over, only to find the boy, who- with control over the elements far better that she had witnessed, save for water deities, use the water as a platform to rise from the bottom of the cliff.  
Of course, the boy had to make a huge spectacle off if it, the rest rushed over to the cliff side to witness the torrents of water that rose the son if Poseidon form the waters.  
Nonchalantly he stepped off the water platform, as though he had not just showcased impeccable control over water.  
"I'm fine" he breathed, " but the Manticore is going to be slightly slowed down..." He unclasped his hand, revealing a good chunk the Manticore's tail and its stinger.  
Annabeth gasped as she tackled the boy in a tight hug, " You're alive!" The boy simply awkwardly hugged her back.  
Zoe could feel an uncomfortable feeling bubbling in the pit of her gut. The hunter decided to ignore the feeling of envy in her gut,  
We've burdened these children enough," Artemis announced. "Zoe, we will rest here for a few hours. Raise the tents. Treat the wounded. Retrieve our guests' belongings from the school."  
"Yes, my lady."  
"And, Bianca, come with me. I would like to speak with you."  
"What about me?" Nico asked.  
Artemis considered the boy. "Perhaps you can show Grover how to play that card game you enjoy. I'm sure Grover would be happy to entertain you for a while… as a favor to me?"  
Grover just about tripped over himself getting up. "You bet! Come on, Nico!"  
Nico and Grover walked off toward the woods, talking about hit points and armor ratings and a bunch of other stuff. Artemis led a confused-looking Bianca along the cliff. The Hunters began unpacking their knapsacks and making camp.  
Zoe decided not to give Thalia one more evil look as she had done in her past, then left to oversee things.  
As soon as she was gone... Well as soon she hid herself behind a couple of trees, Thalia stamped her foot in frustration. "The nerve of those Hunters! They think they're so… Argh!"  
"I'm with you," Percy nervously said, almost like he knew she knew he was lying. "I don't trust—"  
"Oh, you're with me?" Thalia turned on me furiously. "What were you thinking back there in the gym, Percy? You'd take on Dr. Thorn all by yourself? You knew he was a monster!"  
"What do you mean alone? You were with me and we tried to look for the others, didn't we?"  
Her jaw clenched. He had a point  
Thalia didn't say another word, turned, and marched off, leaving Percy alone in the snow-covered woods.  
Zoe contemplated confronting him about the mysterious shift in the time stream, but thought the better of it and decided to help her sisters instead.  
The Hunters set up their camping site in a matter of minutes. Seven large tents, all of silver silk, curved in a crescent around one side of a bonfire. Siva blew a silver dog whistle, and a dozen white wolves appeared out of the woods. They began circling the camp like guard dogs. The Hunters walked among them and fed them treats, completely unafraid, but Zoe decided she would stick close to the tents. Falcons watched them from the trees, their eyes flashing in the firelight. Even the weather seemed to bend to the goddess's will. The air was still cold, but the wind died down and the snow stopped falling, so it was almost pleasant sitting by the fire.  
Zoe observed Percy, who watched Thalia pacing in the snow at the edge of camp, walking among the wolves without fear. She stopped and looked back at Westover Hall, which was now completely dark, looming on the hillside beyond the woods. He wondered what she was thinking.  
Finally, one of the Hunters brought Percy his backpack. Grover and Nico came back from their walk, and Grover helped fix up his wounded arm.  
"It's green!" Nico said with delight.  
"Hold still," Grover told him. "Here, eat some ambrosia while I clean that out."  
He winced as the satyr dressed the wound, but the ambrosia square helped. Zoe wondered what it tasted like for the boy... To her it always tasted of coffee, Zoe sighed as she remembered her life before the hunt. Around the tree that bore fruit to the golden apples, Zoe had grown coffee plants. She would often harvest the cherries, extract their seeds, dry them and let them stagnate in water before she would drink them away from her sisters. With time she had begun to add honey to the mixture to sweeten the bitter taste of the seeds. Best decision she had made before she joined the hunters.  
Nico rummaged through his own bag, which the Hunters had packed for him. Nico laid out a bunch of figurines in the snow—little battle replicas of Greek gods and heroes. Zoe recognized Zeus with a lightning bolt, Ares with a spear, Apollo with his sun chariot, and of course her lady Artemis with her bow pulled back.  
"Big collection," Percy said.  
Nico grinned. "I've got almost all of them, plus their holographic cards! Well, except for a few really rare ones."  
"You've been playing this game a long time?"  
"Just this year. Before that…" He knit his eyebrows.  
"What?" Percy asked.  
"I forget. That's weird."  
He looked unsettled, but it didn't last long. "Hey, can I see that sword you were using?"  
Percy showed him Riptide, and explained how it turned from a pen into a sword just by uncapping it.  
"Cool! Does it ever run out of ink?"  
"Um, well, I don't actually write with it."  
"Are you really the son of Poseidon?"  
"Well, yeah."  
"Can you surf really well, then?"  
He looked at Grover, who was trying hard not to laugh.  
"Jeez, Nico," Percy groaned out. "I've never really tried."  
He went on asking questions. Did he fight a lot with Thalia, since she was a daughter of Zeus? (He didn't answer that one.)  
If Annabeth's mother was Athena, the goddess of wisdom, then why didn't Annabeth know better than to not recognize Lady Artemis (she tried not to strangle Nico for asking that one.)  
Was Annabeth his girlfriend? (At this point, Zoe was ready to stick the kid in a meat-flavored sack and throw him to the wolves. Although she didn't really know why she was getting mad at the kid... It was almost like she shared an emphatic link with the son of Poseidon...)  
Oh no...

________________________________________  
Chapter 5: Hunt  
________________________________________  
Percy figured any second Nico was going to ask him how many hit points he had, and he'd lose his cool completely, but then Zoe Nightshade came up to them.  
"Percy Jackson."  
She had dark brown eyes and a slightly upturned nose. With her silver circlet and her proud expression. Exactly as he remembered. His breath hitched when her remembered her final moments. He was not going to let her die again.  
"Come with me," she said. "Lady Artemis wishes to speak with thee."  
Zoe led him to the last tent, which looked no different from the others, and waved him inside. Bianca di Angelo was seated next to the auburn-haired goddess.  
The inside of the tent was warm and comfortable. Silk rugs and pillows covered the floor. In the center, a golden brazier of fire seemed to burn without fuel or smoke. Behind the goddess, on a polished oak display stand, was her huge silver bow, carved to resemble gazelle horns. The walls were hung with animal pelts: black bear, tiger, and several others he still didn't recognize. Beside the goddess was a deer with glittering fur and silver horns, its head resting contentedly in Artemis's lap.  
"Join us, Percy Jackson," the goddess said.  
He sat across from her on the tent floor. The goddess studied him, which made him uncomfortable. She had such old eyes for a young girl. The goddess' eyes unnerved the demigod.  
"Are you surprised by my age?" she asked.  
"No." He she said with a straight face.  
Artemis, to her credit gained a surprised expression, "And why, may I ask are you not surprised half-blood?"  
Whelp, he just dug himself into a ditch. Might as well spit out the truth.  
"You could appear as a grown woman, but this is what you prefer. This is the average age of your Hunters, and all young maidens for whom you are a patron to."  
Artemis raised an eyebrow at Percy's choice of words. Perhaps he wasn't helping his case by repeating nearly exactly what the goddess would have said if he had said that he was confused by her age.  
"You seem to be incredibly observant for a son of Poseidon. Yes, what you have said is true. I appear in this form to better relate with my hunt, moreover I use this form to prevent my hunters from going astray."  
"Going astray?" He asked, fully knowing what her answer would be.  
"Grow up. Become smitten with boys. Become silly, preoccupied, insecure. Forget themselves."  
"Oh."  
Zoe sat down at Artemis's right. She glared at him as if all the stuff Artemis had just said was his fault, like he'd invented the idea of being a guy.  
But the glare certainly wasn't as harsh as he remembered it being. I fact, it seemed half-hearted at best. Percy allowed some semblance of hope to bubble in his chest, perhaps he wasn't the only one to be sent back in time. Perhaps this Zoe who was seated before him remembered their quest together? Perhaps he wouldn't be alone with the burden of knowing what was in store for them in the future.  
"You must forgive my Hunters if they do not welcome you," Artemis said. "It is very rare that we would have boys in this camp. Boys are usually forbidden to have any contact with the Hunters. The last one to see this camp…" She looked at Zoe. "Which one was it?"  
"That boy in Colorado," Zoe said. "You turned him into a jackalope."  
"Ah, yes." Artemis nodded, satisfied. "I enjoy making jackalopes. At any rate, Percy, I've asked you here so that you might tell me more of the manticore. Bianca has reported some of the… mmm, disturbing things the monster said. But she may not have understood them. I'd like to hear them from you."  
And so, he told her.  
When he was done, Artemis put her hand thoughtfully on her silver bow. "I feared this was the answer."  
Zoe sat forward. "The scent, my lady?"  
"Yes."  
"What scent?" He asked, but in his head, he could only think of Bessie the Ophiotaurus.  
Artemis narrowed her eyes at him, which went unnoticed by all the others in the tent.  
"Things are stirring that I have not hunted in millennia," Artemis murmured. "Prey so old I have nearly forgotten."  
She stared at Percy intently. "We came here tonight sensing the manticore, but he was not the one I seek. Tell me again, exactly what Dr. Thorn said."  
"Um, 'I hate middle school dances.'"  
Percy was beginning to get nervous under the cynical stare of the goddess before him.  
"No, no. After that."  
"He said somebody called the General was going to explain things to me."  
Atlas... The name brought venom to Percy's mouth. He was the reason Zoe died.  
No one noticed Artemis widening her eyes ever so slightly.  
Zoe's face paled. She turned to Artemis and started to say something, but Artemis raised her hand to silence her lieutenant.  
"Go on, Percy," the goddess said.  
"Well, then Thorn was talking about the Great Stirring"  
"Yeah. And he said, 'Soon we shall have the most important monster of all—the one that shall bring about the downfall of Olympus.'"  
The goddess was so still she could've been a statue.  
"Maybe he was lying," I said, it felt nice to just spill some crap out of his teeth, even though that was still pretty much what he said the first time around.  
Artemis shook her head. "No. He was not. I've been too slow to see the signs. I must hunt this monster."  
Zoe nodded. "We will leave right away, my lady."  
"No, Zoe. I must do this alone."  
"But, Artemis—"  
"This task is too dangerous even for the Hunters. You know where I must start my search. You cannot go there with me."  
"As… as you wish, my lady."  
Zoe didn't look nearly as disheartened as he remembered... Maybe Percy was right? Maybe she knew of the future too? Maybe she knew of her fate...?  
I will find this creature," Artemis vowed. "And I shall bring it back to Olympus by winter solstice. It will be all the proof I need to convince the Council of the Gods of how much danger we are in."  
"You know what the monster is?" I asked, of course the goddess knew about the Ophiotaurus...  
Artemis gripped her bow. "Let us pray I am wrong."  
"Can goddesses pray?" He asked, because why not.  
A flicker of a smile played across Artemis's lips. "Before I go, Percy Jackson, I have a small task for you."  
"Please don't tell me to escort the hunters to Camp…"  
Artemis bit back a small smile.  
"Sadly, no. I want you to escort the Hunters back to Camp Half-Blood. They can stay there in safety until I return."  
"What?" Zoe' blurted out. "But, Artemis, we hate that place. The last time we stayed there—"  
"Yes, I know," Artemis said. "But I'm sure Dionysus will not hold a grudge just because of a little, ah, misunderstanding. It's your right to use Cabin Eight whenever you are in need. Besides, I hear they rebuilt the cabins you burned down."  
"And now there is one last decision to make." Artemis turned to Bianca. "Have you made up your mind, my girl?"  
Of course, Artemis asked Bianca to join the hunt again...  
Bianca hesitated. "I'm still thinking about it."  
"Wait," He said, sticking to character. "Thinking about what?"  
Of course, he knew what she was thinking about... Percy was unsure if he should fight harder against her jointing or if he should try harder to protect her during the quest... Maybe he could convince Zoe to not take her in the first place...?  
"They… they've invited me to join the Hunt."  
Percy said nothing... He decided that certain events were set in stone... He could only hope that her death wasn't one of those.  
"Bianca," he said slowly. "What about your brother? Nico can't be a Hunter."  
"Certainly not," Artemis agreed. "He will go to camp. Unfortunately, that's the best boys can do."  
"Hey!" he protested half-heartedly.  
"You can see him from time to time," Artemis assured Bianca. "But you will be free of responsibility. He will have the camp counselors to take care of him. And you will have a new family. Us."  
"A new family," Bianca repeated dreamily. "Free of responsibility."  
She looked at Zoe. "Is it worth it?"  
Zoe hesitated for an uncomfortable second and then Zoe nodded. "It is."  
It almost sounded like she didn't want to say the words. She almost seemed… Hesitant.  
"What do I have to do?" Bianca asked.  
"Say this," Zoe told her, " 'I pledge myself to the goddess Artemis.'"  
"I… I pledge myself to the goddess Artemis."  
"'I turn my back on the company of men, accept eternal maidenhood, and join the Hunt.'"  
Bianca repeated the lines. "That's it?"  
Zoe nodded. "If Lady Artemis accepts thy pledge, then it is binding."  
"I accept it," Artemis said.  
The flames in the brazier brightened, casting a silver glow over the room. Bianca looked no different, but she took a deep breath and opened her eyes wide. "I feel… stronger."  
"Welcome, sister," Zoe said.  
"Remember your pledge," Artemis said. "It is now your life."

________________________________________  
Chapter 6: Truth  
________________________________________  
Artemis closed her eyes. "Dawn is approaching. Zoe, break camp. You must get to Long Island quickly and safely. I shall summon a ride from my brother."  
Zoe didn't look really happy about this idea, but she nodded and told Bianca to follow her. As she was leaving, Bianca paused in front of me. "I'm sorry, Percy. But I want this. I really, really do."  
Percy sighed, and then smiled at the daughter of Hades, "It's fine Bianca. I'll keep Nico safe. I promise."  
Then she was gone, and Percy was left alone with the twelve-year-old goddess.  
Artemis narrowed her pale silvery eyes at the son of Poseidon. Both sat up straighter.  
"I need to speak with you boy..."  
Percy gulped, the moon goddess hadn't asked an audience with him the last time around. He was nervous.  
She was blunt, "How do you know about the Ophiotaurus?" was her first question.  
Percy's eyes widened, she had read his thoughts!  
"That's correct, Son of Poseidon"  
Percy sighed, he guessed he would have to explain the whole thing to the auburn-haired goddess.  
And so, he did, he told her everything.  
He told her how He had already lived through the current events. He told her how she was going to get captured when she went to hunt the Ophiotaurus. He told her how they would embark on a quest to save her. He told her how Bianca would die. He told her how Zoe would die. He told her about the Labyrinth. He told her about Calypso. He told her how he bathed in the river Styx. He finally told her about how he lost at the battle of Manhattan.  
Finally, when he was done, Artemis spoke only three words.  
"I believe you."  
Percy could see it in her pale, silver eyes. She truly did believe him. Percy felt a weight being lifted off his shoulders. At the very least, he had someone to confide in about his secret. He wouldn't have the secret burden him down.  
"We must leave now..."  
It didn't seem like she was about to react to the information that the boy had just provided her with.  
The Hunters broke camp as quickly as they'd set it up. He stood shivering in the snow (unlike the Hunters, who didn't seem to feel all that uncomfortable), and Artemis stared into the east like she was expecting something, Apollo perhaps? Bianca sat off to one side, talking with Nico. Percy could tell from his gloomy face that she was explaining her decision to join the Hunt.  
Thalia, Annabeth and Grover came up and huddled around him, anxious to hear what had happened in my audience with the goddess.  
He told them, not mentioning the whole-time travel thing of course.  
Grover turned pale. "The last time the Hunters visited camp, it didn't go well."  
"How'd they even show up here?" Annabeth wondered aloud. "I mean, they just appeared out of nowhere."  
"And Bianca joined them," Thalia said, disgusted. "It's all Zoe's fault. That stuck-up, no good—"  
"Who can blame her?" Grover said. "Eternity with Artemis?" He heaved a big sigh.  
Thalia rolled her eyes. "You satyrs. You're all in love with Artemis. Don't you get that she'll never love you back?"  
"But she's so… into nature," Grover swooned.  
"You're nuts," said Thalia.  
"Nuts and berries," Grover said dreamily. "Yeah."  
Finally, the sky began to lighten. Artemis muttered, "About time. He's so-o-o lazy during the winter."  
Percy couldn't help but chuckle at that.  
There was a sudden burst of light on the horizon and a blast of warmth.  
"Don't look," Artemis advised. "Not until he parks."  
Percy averted his eyes, and saw that the other kids were doing the same. The light and warmth intensified until his winter coat felt like it was melting off of him.  
Then suddenly the light died.  
A red convertible Maserati Spyder pulled up beside them. The snow had melted around the Maserati in a perfect circle, which explained why he was now standing on green grass and his shoes were wet.  
The driver got out, smiling. He looked about seventeen or eighteen, and for a second, Percy could only think of how similar Apollo looked to Luke. The sun god had the same sandy hair and outdoorsy good looks. But it wasn't Luke. This guy was taller, with no scar on his face like Luke's. His smile was brighter and more playful. (Luke didn't do much more than scowl and sneer these days.) The Maserati driver wore jeans and loafers and a sleeveless T-shirt.  
"Wow," Thalia muttered. "Apollo is hot."  
Percy almost burst out laughing.  
"He's the sun god," he said bluntly.  
"That's not what I meant."  
"Little sister!" Apollo called. If his teeth were any whiter, he could've blinded the questers without the sun car. "What's up? You never call. You never write. I was getting worried!"  
Artemis sighed, rolling her eyes at her brother. "I'm fine, Apollo. And I am not your little sister."  
"Hey, I was born first."  
"We're twins! How many millennia do we have to argue—"  
"So, what's up?" he interrupted. "Got the girls with you, I see. You all need some tips on archery?"  
Artemis grit her teeth. "I need a favor. I have some hunting to do, alone. I need you to take my companions to Camp Half-Blood."  
"Sure, sis!" Then he raised his hands in a stop everything gesture. "I feel a haiku coming on."  
The Hunters all groaned.  
He cleared his throat and held up one hand dramatically.  
"Green grass breaks through snow.  
Artemis pleads for my help.  
I am so cool."  
He grinned at us, waiting for applause.  
"That last line was only four syllables," Artemis said.  
Apollo frowned. "Was it?"  
"Yes. What about I am so big-headed?"  
"No, no, that's six syllables. Hmm." He started muttering to himself.  
Zoe Nightshade turned to the demigods, and Grover. "Lord Apollo has been going through this haiku phase ever since he visited Japan. 'Tis not as bad as the time he visited Limerick. If I'd had to hear one more poem that started with, there once was a goddess from Sparta—"  
"I've got it!" Apollo announced. "I am so awesome. That's five syllables!" He bowed, looking very pleased with himself.  
"And now, sis. Transportation for the Hunters, you say? Good timing. I was just about ready to roll."  
"These demigods will also need a ride," Artemis said, pointing to us. "Some of Chiron's campers."  
"No problem!" Apollo checked us out. "Let's see… Thalia, right? I've heard all about you."  
Thalia blushed. "Hi, Lord Apollo."  
"Zeus's girl, yes? Makes you my half-sister. Used to be a tree, didn't you? Glad you're back. I hate it when pretty girls turn into trees. Man, I remember one time—"  
"Brother," Artemis said. "You should get going.  
"Oh, right." Then he looked at me, and his eyes narrowed. "Percy Jackson?"  
"Yeah. I mean… yes, sir."  
Apollo studied Percy, but he didn't say anything, which he still found a little creepy.  
"Well!" he said at last. "We'd better load up, huh? Ride only goes one way—west. And if you miss it, you miss it."  
"Cool car," Nico said.  
"Thanks, kid," Apollo said.  
"But how will we all fit?"  
"Oh." Apollo seemed to notice the problem for the first time. "Well, yeah. I hate to change out of sports-car mode, but I suppose…"  
He took out his car keys and beeped the security alarm button.  
Chirp, chirp.  
For a moment, the car glowed brightly again. When the glare died, the Maserati had been replaced by one of those Turtle Top shuttle buses like they used for school basketball games.  
"Right," he said. "Everybody in."  
Zoe ordered the Hunters to start loading. She picked up her camping pack, and Apollo said, "Here, sweetheart. Let me get that."  
Zoe recoiled. Her eyes flashed murderously.  
"Brother," Artemis chided. "You do not help my Hunters. You do not look at, talk to, or flirt with my Hunters. And you do not call them sweetheart."  
Apollo spread his hands. "Sorry. I forgot. Hey, sis, where are you off to, anyway?"  
"Hunting," Artemis said. "It's none of your business."  
"I'll find out. I see all. Know all."  
Artemis snorted. "Just drop them off, Apollo. And no messing around!  
"No, no! I never mess around."  
Artemis rolled her eyes, then looked at the demigods. "I will see you by winter solstice. Zoe, you are in charge of the Hunters. Do well. Do as I would do."  
Zoe straightened. "Yes, my lady."  
Artemis knelt and touched the ground as if looking for tracks. When she rose, she looked troubled. "So much danger. The beast must be found."  
She sprinted toward the woods and melted into the snow and shadows.  
Apollo turned and grinned, jangling the car keys on his finger. "So," he said. "Who wants to drive?"  
The Hunters piled into the van. They all crammed into the back so they'd be as far away as possible from Apollo and the rest of those highly infectious males, Bianca sat with them, leaving her little brother to hang in the front with us, which seemed cold to Percy, but Nico didn't seem to mind.  
"This is so cool!" Nico said, jumping up and down in the driver's seat. "Is this really the sun? I thought Helios and Selene were the sun and moon gods. How come sometimes it's them and sometimes it's you and Artemis?"  
"Downsizing," Apollo said. "The Romans started it. They couldn't afford all those temple sacrifices, so they laid off Helios and Selene and folded their duties into our job descriptions. My sis got the moon. I got the sun. It was pretty annoying at first, but at least I got this cool car."  
"But how does it work?" Nico asked. "I thought the sun was a big fiery ball of gas!"  
Apollo chuckled and ruffled Nico's hair. "That rumor probably got started because Artemis used to call me a big fiery ball of gas. Seriously, kid, it depends on whether you're talking astronomy or philosophy. You want to talk astronomy? Bah, what fun is that? You want to talk about how humans think about the sun? Ah, now that's more interesting. They've got a lot riding on the sun… err, so to speak. It keeps them warm, grows their crops, powers engines, makes everything look, well, sunnier. This chariot is built out of human dreams about the sun, kid. It's as old as Western Civilization. Every day, it drives across the sky from east to west, lighting up all those puny little mortal lives. The chariot is a manifestation of the sun's power, the way mortals perceive it. Make sense?"

________________________________________  
Chapter 7: Sun  
________________________________________  
The Hunters drank and ate and laughed like one big happy family. Zoe sat at the head of the table, like she always did for the past thousands of years... She didn't laugh as much as the others, but she did smile from time to time. Her silver lieutenant's band glittered in the dark braids of her hair. Bianca di Angelo seemed to be having a great time. She was trying to learn how to arm wrestle from the Phoebe. The physically larger daughter of Ares was beating her every time, but Bianca didn't seem to mind.  
When they'd finished eating, Chiron made the customary toast to the gods and formally welcomed the Hunters of Artemis. The clapping was pretty halfhearted. Then he announced the "good will" capture-the-flag game for the next night, which got a far better reception. Of course, the campers were eager to win their first game of capture the flag, not that had stopped the hunters from actually winning for the past decade or two.  
The hunters trailed behind Zoe as they made their way back to their cabin. Zoe overheard casual conversations, ranging from what the best method to burn down the cabins was, to more gruesome details such as the intricacies of castration.  
Mostly normal talk.  
When the hunters had made it to their cabin, most simply plopped onto their beds, exhausted with the day's events.  
Zoe had attempted to sleep, truly she did, but the sweet lull of Morpheus's realm did not deem her worthy of invitation.  
Resolving her mind, she sneaked out of her own cabin, making sure that the rest of her hunt did not witness what she had told them countless times to avoid.  
Hypocrisy at its best...  
Zoe slowly strolled about the camp, making sure to avoid the countless harpies as she milled about Camp Half Blood.  
The last time she had experienced the events, she had no trouble sleeping before the night where she received the prophecy.  
She noticed a figure in the distance.  
It seemed someone else had a troubled night too...  
Zoe sneaked forward, checking who was out all alone in the middle of the night.  
Other than herself that is...  
The first detail she noticed was the other person's wind swept, Raven black hair. He was staring off into the distance.  
It was Perseus Jackson.  
The raven-haired demigod was an anomaly. He confused the huntress greatly. He was just... Different. All she had ever known and learned about the opposite sex was coming into question and simply did not apply when it came to the son of Poseidon. And that was before he seemed to be behaving completely different from last time around.  
He carried himself with more confidence, almost as though he knew that he was strong, but not to an extent that made him overzealous or cocky.  
The son of Poseidon was kindhearted, selfless and loyal to the core.  
He was effectively the polar opposite of both Heracles and Orion. The reasons why her and Artemis disliked men respectively.  
Zoe remembered how Percy behaved the last time... Before she was taken back in time...  
He was brave and powerful. He was willing to sacrifice himself with the burden of the sky, just so that Artemis could fight Atlas. He literally held the weight of the world for a woman.  
Zoe recalled their fight with the Nemean Lion, without the boy's quick thinking, they surely would've been in trouble.  
And with the prototype of Talos, he had tried his best to save Bianca but the girl had to ultimately sacrifice herself. Zoe idly wondered what she could do to prevent that outcome.  
She knew that tempering with fate wasn't a great decision, but she had been the reason that Bianca had died... She chose the young, and inexperienced girl for the quest.  
Zoe shook her head, clearing it from the disturbing thoughts.  
After a moment of contemplation, she decided to approach Percy.  
He had his back turned away from her, he seemed to be making an Iris Message.  
Zoe his behind a boulder, the beach line was littered with large stones, she simply chose the closest one and crouched.  
She knew it was wrong for her to be eavesdropping on the son of Poseidon, but her curiosity got the best of her.  
The demigod spoke, breaking Zoe form her mental musing,  
"Are you sure, Artemis?"  
He was speaking with Artemis! Zoe peeked at the boy was still facing away from her, but the face of Artemis was clearly seen in the ripple of rainbows.  
"Yes, I am sure Percy. I need to allow them to capture me. Do not worry, I will make sure to not go down without a fight."  
What were they talking about? Artemis planned to get herself captured? It was all very confusing for Zoe.  
Percy seemed to be relenting, "If you are sure, My Lady, then I can only wish you the best of luck. Stay safe Artemis."  
"Of course, boy. Who do you think I am?" The goddess' eyes held humor, which went unnoticed by the half blood.  
"I'm sorry My Lady..."  
Artemis rolled her eyes at the demigod's obliviousness.  
"I've told you before boy. Cal me by name, not by title."  
Zoe's eyes met her leader's. Artemis' eyes widened slightly, but not enough to be noticed by Percy.  
"I will talk with you later, Percy. She whispered something that Zoe couldn't hear clearly, but she most definitely heard her name being spoken.  
Had her Lady informed the boy of her presence? Had she been caught eavesdropping on the boy?  
Deciding to play it safe, she revealed herself from her hiding place, only to see that the son if the sea god, had continued to stare off into the distance.  
Zoe cautiously made her way towards the boy, her mind whirring with an infinite number of possibilities of what had been going on between Percy and Artemis.  
Had the events taken place like last time? She was asleep the previous time around so she had no clue. Maybe the reason Percy had joined with the quest had been because Artemis had told him to? He had claimed to have joined the quest to save that blonde daughter of Athena he was so fond of (Zoe ignored the slight bubble of envy in her gut), but maybe he had been lying to cover up the fact that he had been asked to meet with the rest of the quest members.  
Or maybe there was a slight possibility that Percy had somehow traveled to the past and informed the goddess about future events?  
Both scenarios were equally improbable.  
For the first one, there would have been no possible way that Artemis somehow contacted Percy, the boy barely recognized the goddess when they had revealed themselves back in Maine.  
But that was last time, this time, the boy behaved ever so subtly different. He knew of the goddess, he rescued the daughter of Athena from the manticore, he even saved all of them from Thalia's driving. Zoe shuddered at that flashback.  
Maybe the second scenario was ever so slightly more possible to have been true.  
But that scared her. If he had indeed returned to the past with her, then he knew she was going to die. She knew that he would beat himself up of he couldn't save her a second time. Her fate was set in stone. The only way to change it was to break the stone it was set on and replace it with a newer rock.  
Shaking her head yet again, she cleared her thoughts.  
She idly hoped that he had indeed traveled through time, if only to make her last few days in earth, someone she empathized with.  
Making up her mind, she walked up to the son of Poseidon. After mentally debating her next move, she took a seat beside him, startling him out of his thoughts.  
"Zoe!" He squeaked out, "What are you doing here?"  
She felt the nervousness radiating out if him. It caused her nervousness to spike too.  
"Couldn't sleep." Was all she said, she still didn't know if the boy beside her was the Percy she had come to know, or the boy that he was before their quest together.  
"Me too" he sighed, relaxing into the sands of the beach. Zoe felt the comfort he felt. It made her relax into the beach sands too.  
The silence was thick, but comfortable. They simply stared into the distance, mere centimeters away from each other.  
Zoe blushed a light pink as she realized how romantic the whole thing might have seemed to any witnesses, just her and Percy, sitting alone at the beach, staring into the distance... Yet a small part of her encouraged her, comforting her raging heartbeat.  
She didn't even bother to reprimand herself for her thoughts. She knew full well that Percy was a good man. But was he good enough for her to-  
She didn't finish the thought, instead chose to simply enjoy the presence of the son of Poseidon.  
Neither spoke a word. The waves licked at their toes in a comforting rhythm.  
Percy, seemingly bored with staring into the distance, brought forth a tendril of water from the beach and began playing with it, creating shapes and objects, much to Zoe's amusement. His mastery over water was simply breathtaking.  
Finally, he settled the shape of the water into his bronze blade. Anaklusmos. Zoe's breath hitched as she witnessed her essence shaped out of water.  
But what Percy did next surprised her even further. He shaped the saline water into the distinct shape of a hairpin. But it wasn't any old hairpin, it was the hairpin that she had given Heracles eons ago, the same hairpin that housed Anaklusmos.  
Zoe decided to keep her hopes down, just because he knew the original form of the blade didn't imply, he was from the future, maybe Chiron had told him so?  
Zoe decided to keep her mouth shut, in lieu of looking like a crazy person for spouting nonsense about time travel.  
Both leaned back into the sand, a sudden bout of tiredness hit Zoe. He felt the waves gently lull her to sleep. And before she knew it, she was deep into Morpheus's realm, Percy fast asleep right beside her.

________________________________________  
Chapter 8: Flag  
________________________________________  
Zoe awoke from her dreamless slumber to the sound of crashing waves.  
The sand felt soft at her back and the steady breathing of the body beside her brought her comfort.  
Her eyes widened in alarm, instantly awake, she jumped to her feet, only to be met with the snoozing face of Percy Jackson.  
She had to fight back the blush that threatened grace her cheeks. She had fallen asleep! Next to a boy nonetheless!  
She felt like smacking herself for letting her guard down like she had. She was an eternal maiden of Artemis; how could she have fallen asleep next to a disgusting male.  
But a small part of her brain vehemently disagreed with herself, calling the sleeping boy a whole myriad of compliments. A stark contrast to the word she had used… 'Disgusting'…  
She decided, in the end that she was going crazy.  
Deciding against waking the son of Poseidon, Zoe made her way back to her cabin. She would need to come up with an excuse for what she had been doing outside the cabin.  
When she reached the cabins, she noted that most of the camp was still fast asleep. Hestia tended to the hearth and a few campers milled about here and there.  
The goddess of the hearth averted her eyes from the burning coals and smiled up at the daughter of Atlas.  
She made her way to the Artemis Cabin and swung the door open. Only Phoebe was awake, for which she was thankful for.  
"Zoe, where were you?" The daughter of Ares asked Zoe with a smile. Phoebe was probably Zoe's closest friend and sister among the hunters.  
"Oh... I was just..." She forgot that she had to come up with an excuse!  
Mentally berating herself, she mumbled out, "Archery Practice."  
She hoped the hunter didn't catch the bluff.  
Phoebe simply shrugged and continued to sharpen her hunting knife. She did that in her free time, claiming that the activity cleared her mind.  
Zoe knew that the actual reason was because it was easier to skin animals with a sharper blade. Gruesome but true.  
"We should wake the rest," Zoe finally interjected, "It's almost time for breakfast."  
Phoebe nodded before she proceeded to wake the hunters one by one. When all thirteen of the hunters were finally awake, Zoe led them to the Dining Pavilion.  
On their way there, Zoe noticed that most of the camp had awoken, everyone hurriedly making their way to the Dining Pavilion, not dissimilar to the hunters.  
When the hunters reached and took their seat in their table, Zoe noticed that Percy had made it to his table. She couldn't help but let a small smile grace her lips. Fortunately, no one caught her in the act.  
The rest of the day went by in a blur, Zoe spent most of it in the arena. She spent the entire shooting violently into the archery targets, often times splitting her arrows at the dead center.  
Before she knew it, she was back in the dining pavilion, her dinner being served to her. She gulped in a mouthful of air. It was the moment of truth, after the game, the prophecy would be revealed.  
The Capture the Flag game wasn't too grand. There were thirteen hunters, and about the same number of campers, perhaps a little more, not that it would make too much of a difference. The hunters were going to win, and it wasn't just her overconfidence speaking, she had literally lived through the hunters winning capture the flag.  
On the campers' side, they had three Hephaestus kids, including the hulking figure of Charles Beckendorf. They also had a few children of Ares, The Stoll Brothers and Nico from Hermes's cabin and a few children of Aphrodite, who surprisingly wanted to play, opting out of sitting on the sidelines. Then of course was Annabeth, the sole member of Athena's cabin playing, and the brains of the group.  
Last, but not least, were Thalia and Percy. The daughter of Zeus, and the son of Poseidon. They were undoubtedly the strongest demigods alive at the time. Although now that Zoe thought about it, perhaps Bianca or Nico would grow to rival them seeing as they are children of Hades.  
Zoe couldn't help but notice how Percy's eyes shone with mirth as he spoke animatedly with the daughter of Zeus. Zoe couldn't help but feel slightly sick to her stomach at the scene.  
She wasn't jealous... Of course, she wasn't...  
Percy seemed to notice her gaze and diverted his attention from Thalia, and volcanic black eyes met sea green.  
A small smile tinted the corners of his lips as he gazed into her eyes, and Zoe almost felt like she could get lost in his eyes.  
Almost...  
She shook her head violently and glared at the boy, he simply laughed and continued with his chat with Thalia.  
Phoebe seemed to notice the interaction but decided to keep quiet.  
From the corner of her eyes, Zoe noticed Nico run up to Percy in an oversized set of armor. The scene almost made her burst into fits of laughter.  
Chiron's hoof thundered on the pavilion floor.  
"Heroes!" he called. "You know the rules! The creek is the boundary line. Blue team—Camp Half-Blood—shall take the west woods. Hunters of Artemis—red team—shall take the east woods. I will serve as referee and battlefield medic. No intentional maiming, please! All magic items are allowed. To your positions!"  
Zoe tool command of her hunters, "Hunters! Follow me!"  
They followed their leader into the woods.  
They decided to place the flag in a small clearing. The campers wouldn't be able to win regardless of where the flag was placed. The hunters were sure to overwhelm them.  
Zoe began barking out orders, and soon the thirteen hunters were in formation. The formation was the same tactic she used the last time, but she decided to stay back and protect the flag.  
Better she face Percy than Bianca.  
Soon the hunters spread out, leaving the black eyes huntress alone.  
Zoe heard a rustling of leaves. Facing that way, she was met with the calm features of one Percy Jackson.  
"Zoe Nightshade" he addressed, a smug grin on his face. Zoe could tell that he had something planned.  
The carefully circled around her, narrowing his eyes slightly, "You weren't supposed to be here..."  
He seemed to be choosing his words carefully. Zoe couldn't make out if his sentence simply meant that her presence wasn't according to Annabeth's plan, or if Percy had traveled back with her and was implying that she had used a different plan this time around.  
She hoped it was the latter.  
Percy uncapped riptide, he seemed to be debating his next words.  
"Bring it... Daughter of Atlas."  
He charged before she could react to his statement. Zoe's mind was whirring. Was it actually possible that the Percy she had befriended before her death was actually the one charging at her, sword drawn?  
She allowed hope to swell into her heart.  
Zoe let a smirk escape her lips, she parried his blade with her silver hunting knife and swung her foot at his chest. The son of Poseidon sidestepped and grabbed hold of her leg.  
He twisted his body, throwing the girl over his shoulder, but she wasn't having any of that, she spun around in midair and swung one of her knives at the raven-haired demigod.  
Percy leaned back, narrowly avoiding the bronze blade. He let out another smirk and swung riptide at her. Zoe dodged the strike and kicks Percy on the chest, sending him to the floor.  
The boy quickly rolls onto his feet and charged at the huntress once again, feinting to the left, before he swung from the right. Unfortunately, Zoe wasn't fast enough the dodge and a deep gash cut through her parka.  
Mildly annoyed that her parka was damaged, Zoe knocks her bow and aims at Percy. The boy simply smirked at her yet again before dropping his weapon.  
"It's good to see you again Zoe", his smirk turned to a small smile.  
Zoe slowly lowered her bow, " Percy?"  
She still couldn't believe her ears. She wasn’t alone. She wasn't the only one burdened with the gift of knowledge.  
Her friend was with her. Her only male friend.  
"It's good to see you again... Percy..."  
Zoe didn't know what came over her. It was almost like her body was being puppeteered by an external force.  
At least that was her excuse.  
She crashed into the son of Poseidon with a giant embrace.  
Hardly a few seconds into the hug, she awkwardly let go of the boy, who simply sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.  
"I didn't know you missed me that much" the boy teased.  
"Oh, shut up!"  
Her cheeks burned a scarlet red. She tossed her hunting knife at the boy, which he dodged with ease. Zoe wondered how old the boy actually was. He seemed to have years more experience then what she remembered of the boy.  
"So..." Percy awkwardly broke her away from her thoughts, "How much do you know about the future?"  
Zoe gulped, "I am aware of the events up until my death. When I had died, I was simply thrown into the body of a past version of myself."  
Percy's eyes steeled, "I'm not going to let you die this time Zoe..." He took a deep breath, almost like he was going to regret what he was about to say next.  
"I swear it in the River Styx"  
Thunder rumbled in the background and Zoe's eyes widened at his oath.

________________________________________  
Chapter 9: Sister  
________________________________________  
"Oh Iris, Goddess of Rainbows, please show me Perseus Jackson, Camp Half Blood."  
Despite it not being like her Artemis was nervous. If what Perseus spoke of was true what she was doing right now was dangerous, very dangerous if Atlas was meant to be attacking her at any moment.  
"Lady Artemis." The voice of Perseus Jackson broke her line of thought.  
"Perseus Jackson." Artemis acknowledged him, analyzing the 'young' demigod. Artemis took a breath before she continued.  
"I have been thinking of what we were discussing and I must say, your situation, this predicament that you have found yourself in... is rather interesting to say the least."  
Perseus Jackson was a bit of a puzzle. He claimed to have been sent back from the future in the body of his past self. Spoke tales of great heroics that were to come within the coming years. And she had to take this information with a grain of salt.  
But the young demigod knew a lot of things that he should not but yet he did. He knew of Zoe's past, her lineage to Atlas, her life as a Hesperide. He even wielded her old sword and knew of it's past. How Heracles broke Zoe's heart and left her to die. It was highly likely that what he spoke was the truth and thus very useful in what may be a coming war.  
He explained everything to her. That as she hunted the Ophiotaurus she would be captured by Atlas, who escaped his punishment, and she would be forced to hold the sky. She needed to confirm the boy's words one last time for surety.  
"I have to be captured by Atlas' forces, otherwise our whole plan may not work." She spoke with a tone of finality.  
She knew that he would not approve of her actions, but she was a goddess and a demigod was not one to control her life.  
"Are you sure, Lady Artemis?" Perseus replied with an/span/span undoubtedly a twinge of concern in his eyes.  
"Yes, Perseus I am sure of this. It's the only way we can allow our plan to work, but I won't go down without a fight." Artemis replied with confidence.  
She figured that he would understand what she meant by mentioning the plan. She needed to keep the timeline as similar as possible to make sure everything goes without a hitch.  
Percy seemed to be finally relenting, "If you are sure, My Lady, then I can only wish you the best of luck. Stay safe Lady Artemis."  
Artemis snorted with amusement. “Of course, boy. Who do you think I am?" The goddess' eyes held humor, which went unnoticed by the half blood.  
"I'm sorry My Lady..." He apologized nervously.  
"Artemis rolled her eyes at the demigod's obliviousness. In the middle of her eye-roll her eyes met with the volcanic black orbs of her  
Her eyes widened slightly at that. What was Zoe Nightshade doing out on the beach in the middle of the night? Moreover, what was she doing at the exact location of the demigod she was in a conversation with.  
"I will talk with you later, Perseus." She dropped her voice down to a whisper, "Keep Zoe safe... And don't inform her of our conversation."  
Artemis knew full well that Zoe could take care of herself. In face she was probably the most powerful halfblooded being, being half titan. She spoke the words because she knew of Zoe's supposed fate. She couldn't help but worry for her sister in all but blood.  
Artemis swiped her hand through the mist, ending the connection. Artemis continued her hunt of the Ophiotaurus deep into the night.  
It was probably one in the morning when a bright flash alerted her of another being.  
Spinning in alarm and pulling out her knifes she saw the intelligent and prideful grey eyes of her sister Athena. She smiled at the sight of her dear friend.  
"Athena!" Artemis was happy to see her bookworm of a sister, they hadn't met since the Summer Solstice, which was an awful lot of time ago.  
"Artemis." The raven black-haired women were apparently accustomed to her sister's antics. Athena smiled softly at her sister and struck up a conversation.  
"So why are you this far out. I assume it's another hunt?" Athena questioned.  
"I think I’ve finally found the evidence that can convince our father the Titans are rising." Artemis replied gravely.  
"So, what are you hunting then, a Titan?" Athena replied curtly.  
"Even worse sister. The Ophiotaurus has been reborn. And I need to find it before the Titans."  
The two continued their conversation, enthralled in each other's words, as time passed the failed to take notice of the array of monsters that began to surround them.  
Artemis drew a pair of silver hunting knives, curved like the crescent moon. Athena took out her bronze spear and her shield Aegis. It was a blur. Midnight black hellhounds pounced at them, doing everything to maul at the immortal’s flesh. Hours drew on. Monster after monster, and endless wave of destruction followed. Golden dust littered the ground and choked the air. Not long after the monster numbers reduced to near nothingness Atlas made his appearance. He glared at them with his stony gray eyes. He cracked his neck audibly and pulled out his own spear. Artemis' bones and muscles screamed in agony, golden ichor leaked from the several wounds that adorned her legs, chest, and arms. She knew that he was speaking but she failed to register the words. The titan of strength smiled with malice. He leaped forward to strike the Goddess of wisdom but before Artemis could react a blow struck her head from behind. As her vision tunneled, she saw the son of Hermes fight Athena with the titan. Before she fainted, she saw the two disappear with Athena in bonds.  
She woke up an hour later, and looked around, she was still in the same clearing but without Athena nearby. She failed her sister. If she continued on her path she wouldn't have been taken, it's all her fault.  
Oh Iris, goddess of rainbows, show me Perseus Jackson, Camp Half Blood."  
The boy was still at the beach, very much still wide awake. Except Zoe sprawled out on the sandy beach floor beside him. She was fast asleep.  
Artemis narrowed her eyes at the scene but did not mention it.  
"Percy!" She called, startling him out of his thoughts, but not loud enough to wake her lieutenant.  
"Yes La- Lady Artemis" He replied, stifling with a yawn.  
He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes.  
He seemed to be just about ready to drop dead.  
Artemis started sadly. “Athena joined me in my hunt, and as we talked, we were attacked, we fought and fought but it was like we were under a spell, we grew weaker and Atlas joined in I was attacked from behind from the Hermes spawn and they took Athena."  
Percy's eyes widened in thinly veiled alarm.  
"That wasn't supposed to happen..." He began to pace around the beach worriedly.  
Finally, he nodded his head, " A quest will be issued tonight, after your hunters defeat us in the capture the flag game. The Oracle of Delphi moves on its own accord to the creek and delivers to prophecy to Zoe."  
That was news to her. He had simply brushed past the time in camp when he explained the story to Artemis the first time.  
Artemis believed him. She had no reason not to. For some gods forsaken reason, the son of Poseidon was becoming like a huntress was to her, another friend, he was becoming a son to her strangely.  
His personality simply gravitated people towards him. His loyalty, kindheartedness, and passion simply made people like him.  
Even if this Percy was two years more experienced than he was supposed to be. Especially because he was two years more experienced than he was supposed to be. The boy was mature and intelligent, yet he wasn't egotistical or cocky.  
That was probably the reason why Zoe had befriended him in her previous life. It seemed like she was well on her way on making her first friend in this life also.  
The hunters all saw her as a leader or as an older sister. Phoebe was probably the closest thing she had for a friend, but even the daughter of Ares held too much respect for the daughter of Atlas to be her true friend.  
Besides, if Zoe was to befriend anyone outside her hunt, it might as well have been Perseus Jackson... Even if Artemis had a burning question as to why the demi titan was asleep beside Percy...  
"Um... Lady Artemis?"  
Artemis blushed as she realized she had zoned out while she was talking to the boy.  
"I'm sorry, got lost in thought. I'll have to go back out and rescue Athena, keep an eye on Zoe and make sure everything else goes to plan."  
She ended the call and sighed to herself. She was growing soft... but she needed to ignore that, right now all that mattered was rescuing Athena.  
A bright golden flash filled the clearing once more and Apollo was now with her.  
"Don't worry lil' sis, your big bro is here for you"  
Artemis was far too exhausted to bother correcting him. She simply relaxed into his comforting hold. Exhaustion and pain filled her and the next thing she knew she was fast asleep...  
When her eyes snapped open, it was the break of dawn. Her eyes scanned her surroundings. She was in Apollo's Infirmary.  
Deciding to go against better judgement, she flashed to her own palace. Apollo would know where she was if he needed her.

________________________________________  
Chapter 10: Woods  
________________________________________  
When Percy awoke, he was alone in the beach. He absently wondered if the previous day had been a dream.  
But the Zoe shaped depression in the sand beside him told him a different story...  
He stretched his cramped limbs and made his way back to civilization.  
As luck would have it, he crashed into his favorite satyr on his way. Enraptured in their conversation they ended up at a meadow. They sat in the meadow watching the satyrs chase the wood nymphs through the snow. The nymphs had promised to kiss the satyrs if they got caught, but they hardly ever did. Usually the nymph would let the satyr get up a full head of steam, then she'd turn into a snow-covered tree and the poor satyr would slam into it headfirst and get a pile of snow dumped on him.  
Over in the frozen meadow, a satyr skidded on his hooves as he chased after a redheaded tree nymph. She giggled and held out her arms as he ran toward her. Pop! She turned into a Scotch pine and he kissed the trunk at top speed,  
"Ah, love," Grover said dreamily.  
Percy simply rolled his eyes at the antics of one of his best friends.  
Taking his leave, Percy made his way to the Pavilion for some much-needed breakfast. He noticed that Zoe was already at the hunters' table and she seemed to be enjoying herself.  
After breakfast, Percy simple roamed around the camp. He first made his way to the Hephaestus cabin. He had an armor request, which he dropped off with Charles Beckendorf. It was a special armor, whose details needn't have to be gone through at the moment.  
Percy visited the Pegasus stables, but Silena Beauregard from the Aphrodite cabin was having an argument with one of the Hunters, and he decided he'd better not get involved.  
He looked the other direction. At the top of Half-Blood Hill, Mr. D and Argus were feeding the baby dragon that guarded the Golden Fleece.  
That would mean that the big house was free... Percy contemplated whether he wanted to visit the oracle about this fate, that had changed. He decided against it in the end.  
Percy spent the next few hours simply hanging around camp, usually with Annabeth who was deeply in conversation with Thalia which allowed him to talk to Nico, mostly on Mythomagic to his misfortune.  
Before he knew it, it was time for Capture the Flag with the hunters.  
The Capture the Flag game wasn't too grand. There were thirteen hunters, and about the same number of campers.  
On the campers’ side, they had three Hephaestus kids, including the hulking figure of Charles Beckendorf. They also had a few children of Ares, The Stoll Brothers and Nico from Hermes's cabin and a few children of Aphrodite, who surprisingly wanted to play, opting out of sitting on the sidelines. Then of course was Annabeth, the sole member of Athena's cabin playing, and the brains of the group.  
Last, but not least, were Thalia and Percy. The daughter of Zeus, and the son of Poseidon. They were undoubtedly the strongest demigods alive.  
Percy's eyes shone with mirth as he talked animatedly with his sister in all bit blood. They probably weren't as close as they had been, but they were getting there.  
"I'll take the offense," Thalia volunteered. "You take defense."  
"Oh." Percy hesitated, because he'd been about to say the exact same thing, only reversed. "Don't you think with your shield and all, you'd be better defense?"  
Thalia already had Aegis on her arm, and even their own teammates were giving her a wide berth, trying not to cower before the bronze head of Medusa.  
"Well, I was thinking it would make better offense," Thalia said. "Besides, you've had more practice at defense."  
Percy zoned away from the conversation, noticing eyes staring at him. When he rose his head, his sea green eyes met with her volcanic black.  
A small smile tinted the corners of his lips as he gazed into her eyes. She shook her head violently and glared at the boy, he simply laughed and continued with his chat with Thalia, who clearly witnessed the interaction between the two.  
She decided not to comment.  
"Just trust me Sparky..."  
Percy smirked at her.  
"Cool." Thalia turned to help some of the Aphrodite kids, who were having trouble suiting up their armor without breaking their nails. Nico di Angelo ran up to Percy with a big grin on his face.  
"Percy, this is awesome!" His blue-feathered bronze helmet was falling in his eyes, and his breastplate was about six sizes too big.  
Nico lifted his sword with effort. "Do we get to kill the other team?"  
"Well… no."  
"But the Hunters are immortal, right?"  
"That's only if they don't fall in battle. Besides—"  
"It would be awesome if we just, like, resurrected as soon as we were killed, so we could keep fighting, and—"  
"Nico, this is serious. Real swords. These can hurt."  
He stared at Percy, a little disappointed, and he realized that he'd just sounded like his mother. Whoa. Not a good sign.  
Percy patted Nico on the shoulder. "Hey, it's cool. Just follow the team. Stay out of Zoe's way. We'll have a blast."  
Chiron's hoof thundered on the pavilion floor.  
"Heroes!" he called. "You know the rules! The creek is the boundary line. Blue team—Camp Half-Blood—shall take the west woods. Hunters of Artemis—red team—shall take the east woods. I will serve as referee and battlefield medic. No intentional maiming, please! All magic items are allowed. To your positions!"  
"Sweet," Nico whispered next to me. "What kind of magic items? Do I get one?"  
I was about to break it to him that he didn't, when Thalia said, "Blue team! Follow me!"  
They cheered and followed.  
Annabeth had quickly run through the plan... For the fourth time. It wouldn't matter, they were gonna lose anyway...  
Percy didn't mind... As long as he got to do what he planned to... Talk to Zoe Nightshade...  
Disregarding how creepy that sounded, he had a pretty solid plan.  
Waltz up to where the hunters had kept the flag last time and hope the huntress was in the vicinity.  
Flawless plan really...  
Percy set Nico on guard duty with Beckendorf and the Stoll brothers, figuring he'd be safely out of the way.  
"We'll send out a decoy to the left," Annabeth told the team. "Silena, you lead that."  
"Got it!"  
"Take Laurel and Jason. They're good runners. Make a wide arc around the Hunters, attract as many as you can. I'll take the main raiding party around to the right and catch them by surprise."  
Everybody nodded. It sounded good, and Annabeth said it with such confidence you couldn't help but believe it would work.  
Thalia looked at Percy. "Anything to add, Percy?"  
"Um, yeah. Keep sharp on defense. We've got four guards, two scouts. That's not much for a big forest. I'll be roving. Yell if you need help."  
"And don't leave your post!" Thalia said.  
"Unless you see a golden opportunity," I added.  
Thalia scowled. "Just don't leave your post." Percy rolled his eyes not really caring.  
"Now, is everybody clear?"  
Everybody nodded. They broke into smaller groups. The horn sounded, and the game began.  
Silena's group disappeared into the woods on the left. Thalia's group gave it a few seconds, then darted off towards the right.  
Percy waited for something to happen. He climbed Zeus's Fist and had a good view over the forest.  
When the coast was clear he made his way towards the hunters' flag.  
Lucky him, Zoe stood by the flag, as though she was waiting for him. That immediately raised red flags in his mind. Bianca was supposed to be on guard duty.  
Percy hoped that he was right in his gamble...  
"Zoe Nightshade" he addressed, a smug grin on his face.  
He carefully circled around her, narrowing his eyes slightly, "You weren't supposed to be here..."  
Percy uncapped riptide, debated his next words wording them carefully.  
"Bring it... Daughter of Atlas."  
He charged before she could react to his statement.  
Zoe let a smirk escape her lips, she parried his blade with her silver hunting knife and swung her foot at his chest. The son of Poseidon sidestepped and grabbed hold of her leg. He twisted his body, throwing the girl over his shoulder, but she wasn't having any of that, she spun around in midair and swung one of her knives at the raven-haired demigod. Percy leaned back, narrowly avoiding the bronze blade. He let out another smirk and swung riptide at her. Zoe dodged the strike and dropkicks Percy on the chest, sending him sliding across the floor. The boy quickly gets on his feet and charged at the huntress, feinting to the left, before he swung from the right. Unfortunately, Zoe wasn't fast enough the dodge and a deep gash cut through her parka. Mildly annoyed that her parka was damaged, Zoe knocks her bow and aims at Percy. The boy simply smirked at her yet again before dropping his weapon.  
It was probably worth the risk...  
"It's good to see you again Zoe", his smirk turned to a small smile.  
Zoe slowly lowered her bow, " Percy?"  
"It's good to see you again... Percy..."  
Percy wasn't sure why but she crashed into the son of Poseidon with a giant embrace.  
Hardly five seconds into the hug, she awkwardly let go of the boy, who simply sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.  
"I didn't know you missed me that much" the boy teased.  
Her cheeks burned a scarlet red. She threw her hunting knife at the boy, which he dodged with ease.  
"Do you wish to be on the wrong end of my knife!"  
Percy awkwardly put his hands up for her to relax. "How much do you know about the future?"  
Zoe explained all she knew to the boy. Up until her... Death, the white stars twinkling as she died?  
Percy's eyes steeled, "I'm not going to let you die this time Zoe..." He took a deep breath, almost like he was going to regret what he was about to say next.  
"I swear it on the River Styx"  
Thunder rumbled in the background and Zoe's eyes widened at his solemn oath.  
She couldn't help the single tear droplet from rolling across her cheek as she crashed into him with another hug.  
The out of character-ness of the huntress made Percy wonder whether the girl he was holding onto was in fact Zoe Nightshade...  
Five more awkward seconds later, Zoe untangled herself from the boy and blushed a deep scarlet.  
"So- sorry... I apologize for my rash actions"  
Percy simply laughed wholeheartedly. He finally had a friend from the future, he no longer had to worry if he was going insane... And he wasn't going to screw things up.

________________________________________  
Chapter 11: House  
________________________________________  
"The Hunters win!" Chiron announced without pleasure. Then he muttered, "For the fifty-sixth time in a row."  
"Perseus Jackson!" Thalia yelled, storming toward him. She smelled like rotten eggs, and she was so mad that blue sparks flickered on her armor. Everybody cringed and backed up because of Aegis. It took all of Percy's willpower not to grin at Thalia's reaction.  
"What in the name of the gods were you THINKING?" she bellowed.  
Percy began thinking, but he didn't know what to say to the daughter of Zeus.  
"If you actually went for the flag, instead of chatting up the enemy, you would've won us our first Capture the Flag against the hunters!"  
"Well Thalia, considering you look like a train wreck and I do not, I’d say I done pretty good standing toe to toe with Lady Artemis' Lieutenant who would be the best fighter in the hunters." he knew the taunt was mean, but he was simply too oblivious to care. he and his best friend always fought with each other, only to make up five minutes after the whole ordeal. Besides he missed messing with the girl, they hardly ever met after she had gone off to join the hunters.  
Thalia grew angry and instead of replying struck Percy with a bolt of white lightening which flung Percy across the creek. Hunters burst out laughing and Percy stood up calmly. Surprisingly, his skin didn't char, through the burnt hole on his orange tee was unblemished skin.  
"Oh, is that all Thalia, would have thought the daughter of the, almighty, Zeus could do more than graze me." Percy taunted with a smirk but anger flashing in his eyes. As he glared at Thalia the entirety of the creek was lifted out of the river bed and swirled around them. Intimidation tactics were awesome...  
Before anything else could happen, another voice spoke out stopping the fight in its tracks.  
"Stop this pathetic fight now, you two are both right and wrong."  
Percy gulped. He could make out that voice anywhere. He so wished that the goddess hadn't seen the embrace her lieutenant had locked him in. Both of them.  
"Lady Artemis!" The hunters bowed to their mistress.  
Suddenly everyone else who watched on the coming fight in awe and fear froze.  
Someone… something was approaching. It was shrouded in a murky green mist, but as it got closer, the campers and Hunters gasped.  
"This is impossible," Chiron said. Percy never heard him sound so nervous. "It… she has never left the attic. Never."  
And yet, the withered mummy that held the Oracle shuffled forward until she stood in the center of the group. Mist curled around their feet, turning the snow a sickly shade of green.  
None dared move. Then her voice hissed inside Percy's head. Apparently, everyone could hear it, because several clutched their hands over the ears.  
"I am the spirit of Delphi, the voice said. Speaker of the prophecies of Phoebus Apollo, slayer of the mighty Python."  
The Oracle regarded Percy with its cold, dead eyes. Then she turned unmistakably toward Zoe Nightshade. "Approach, Seeker, and ask."  
Zoe swallowed. "What must I do?"  
The Oracle's mouth opened, and green mist poured out. Percy saw the vague image of a mountain, and a woman standing at the barren peak. It was Athena, but she was wrapped in chains, fettered to the rocks. She was on her knees, her hands raised as if to fend off an attacker, and it looked like she was in pain. The oracle spoke in its raspy voice.  
Five shall go west to the goddess in chains,  
One shall be lost in the land without rain,  
The bane of Olympus shows the trail,  
Campers and Hunters combined prevail,  
The Titan's curse must one withstand,  
And one shall perish by a parent's hand.  
Then, as they were watching, the mist swirled and retreated like a great green serpent into the mummy's mouth. The Oracle sat down on a rock and became as still as she'd been in the attic, as if she might sit by this creek for a hundred years.  
________________________________________  
The council was held around a Ping-Pong table in the rec room. Dionysus waved his hand and supplied snacks: Cheez Whiz, crackers, and several bottles of red wine. Then Chiron reminded him that wine was against his restrictions and most of the demigods were underage. Mr. D sighed. With a snap of his fingers the wine turned to Diet Coke. Nobody drank that either.  
Mr. D and Chiron (in wheelchair form) sat at one end of the table. Zoe and Bianca di Angelo (who had kind of become Zoe's personal assistant) took the other end. Thalia and Grover and Percy sat along the right, and the other head councilors—Annabeth, Beckendorf, Silena Beauregard, and the Stoll brothers—sat on the left. The Ares kids were supposed to send a representative, too, but all of them had gotten broken limbs (accidentally) during capture the flag, courtesy of the Hunters. They were resting up in the infirmary. Phoebe took up the mantle instead.  
Artemis had retired back to Olympus, she hadn't mentioned Athena's kidnapping, much to Percy's chagrin. Everyone chalked it up to Artemis wanting to check on her hunters and make sure nothing happened to them.  
Zoe started the meeting off on a positive note. "This is pointless."  
Percy nearly face-palmed.  
"Cheez Whiz!" Grover gasped. He began scooping up crackers and Ping-Pong balls and spraying them with topping.  
"We mustn't waste time" Zoe began, "Time is of the essence.  
"And go where?" Chiron asked.  
"West!" Bianca supplied. It was rather unnerving to see how different she looked after just a few days with the Hunters. Her dark hair was braided like Zoe's now, so you could actually see her face. She had a splash of freckles across her nose, and her dark eyes vaguely reminded Percy of someone famous, but he couldn't think who. She looked like she'd been working out, and her skin glowed faintly, like the other Hunters, as if she'd been taking showers in liquid moonlight.  
"You heard the prophecy. Five shall go west to the goddess in chains. We can get five hunters and go."  
It was Phoebe, the hot-headed daughter of Ares, (who was also a huntress) interjected.  
Annabeth decided to make her presence known, "The prophecy also states that 'Campers and Hunters combined prevail.' We're supposed to do this together."  
Percy almost wanted to shout, 'Five points for Gryffindor!', thankfully he kept his mouth shut.  
Phoebe huffed in annoyance, clearly miffed that she had been corrected by a camper.  
"I fear the prophecy says you do need our help," Chiron said. "Campers and Hunters must cooperate."  
"Or do they?" Mr. D mused, swirling his Diet Coke under his nose like it had a fine bouquet. "One shall be lost. One shall perish. That sounds rather nasty, doesn't it? What if you fail because you try to cooperate?"  
"Mr. D," Chiron sighed, "with all due respect, whose side are you on?"  
Dionysus raised his eyebrows. "Sorry, my dear centaur. Just trying to be helpful."  
"We're supposed to work together," Thalia said stubbornly. "I don't like it either, Phoebe, but you know prophecies. You want to fight against one?"  
The daughter of Ares grimaced, Thalia had scored a point.  
"We must not delay," Chiron warned. "Today is Sunday. This very Friday, December twenty-first, is the winter solstice."  
"Oh, joy," Dionysus muttered. "Another dull annual meeting."  
Most of the room rolled their eyes at that.  
"But who is the goddess who is missing?" The question was brought up by Annabeth, and Percy gulped nervously.  
"Lady Athena"  
The room grew dead silent, save for a barely audible gasp from Annabeth.  
Percy continued, "I had a dream in which Lady Artemis and Lady Athena were in the forest. They were attacked by monsters and some giant figure knocked Lady Athena out and kidnapped her. Lady Artemis couldn't attack as someone attacked her from behind. And besides, the person who showed up when the oracle spouted off the prophecy looked a lot like Lady Athena."  
He sighed in relief at that quick save.  
"Lady Athena must be present at the solstice," Zoe said. "She has been one of the most vocal on the council arguing for action against Kronos's minions. If she is absent, the gods will decide nothing. We will lose another year of war preparation."  
"Are you suggesting that the gods have trouble acting together, young lady?" Dionysus asked.  
"Yes, Lord Dionysus."  
Mr. D nodded. "Just checking. You're right, of course. Carry on."  
"I must agree with Zoe," said Chiron. "Athena's presence at the winter council is critical. We have only a week to find her. And possibly even more important: to locate the monster she was hunting with Artemis. Now, we must decide who goes on this quest."

________________________________________  
Chapter 12: Plan  
________________________________________  
"Three and two," Percy said, emulating his previous quote.  
Everybody looked at him. Thalia even forgot to ignore him and not glare.  
"We're supposed to have five," he continued, feeling self-conscious. "Three Hunters, two from Camp Half-Blood. That's more than fair."  
Thalia and Zoe exchanged looks. They seemed to be saying, 'The idiot actually uses his brain', although Percy supposed that Thalia would have probably called him something nastier like 'kelp-for-brains', or 'kelp-head'  
"Well," Thalia said. "It does make sense."  
Zoe grunted. "I would prefer to take all the Hunters. We will need strength of numbers."  
Zoe was a rather fine actress...  
"You'll be retracing the goddess's path," Chiron reminded her. "Moving quickly. No doubt Artemis tracked the scent of this rare monster, whatever it is, as she moved west. You will have to do the same. The prophecy was clear: The bane of Olympus shows the trail. What would your mistress say? 'Too many Hunters spoil the scent.' A small group is best."  
Zoe picked up a Ping-Pong paddle and studied it like she was deciding who she wanted to whack first. "This monster—the bane of Olympus. I have hunted at Lady Artemis's side for many years, yet I have no idea what this beast might be.", except she did. She knew of the Ophiotaurus, but she had no way of revealing this information without uncovering their secret.  
Everybody looked at Dionysus, because he was the only god present and gods are 'supposed' to know things. He was flipping through a wine magazine, but when everyone got silent, he glanced up, "Well, don't look at me. I'm a young god, remember? I don't keep track of all those ancient monsters and dusty titans. They make for terrible party conversation."  
"Chiron," Percy said, "you don't have any ideas about the monster?"  
Of course, he already knew about the Ophiotaurus, but he still needed to put up a charade so that his secret could remain. Pretty much what Zoe had done mere moments ago.  
Chiron pursed his lips. "I have several ideas, none of them good. And none of them quite make sense. Typhon, for instance, could fit this description. He was truly a bane of Olympus. Or the sea monster Keto. But if either of these were stirring, we would know it. They are ocean monsters the size of skyscrapers. Your father, Poseidon, would already have sounded the alarm. I fear this monster may be more elusive. Perhaps even more powerful."  
"That's some serious danger you're facing," Connor Stoll said, "Sounds like at least two of the five are going to die."  
"One shall be lost in the land without rain" Beckendorf said. "If I were you, I'd stay out of the desert."  
There was a muttering of agreement. Percy looked over at Bianca remorsefully and noticed Zoe looking at him with a sad eye.  
"And the Titan's curse must one withstand," Silena said. "What could that mean?"  
Percy and Zoe exchange a nervous look,  
"One shall perish by a parent's hand," Grover said in between bites of Cheez Whiz and Ping-Pong balls. "How is that possible? Whose parent would kill them?"  
There was heavy silence around the table.  
Percy remembered the oath he took merely minutes ago. Atlas. Atlas would love to kill his daughter. But not if Percy had something to do with it...  
"There will be deaths," Chiron decided. "That much we know."  
"Oh, goody!" Dionysus said.  
Everyone looked at him. He glanced up innocently from the pages of Wine Connoisseur magazine. "Ah, pinot noir is making a comeback. Don't mind me."  
"Percy is right," Silena Beauregard said. "Two campers should go."  
"Oh, I see," Zoe said sarcastically. "And I suppose you wish to volunteer?"  
Silena blushed. "I'm not going anywhere with the Hunters. Don't look at me!"  
"A daughter of Aphrodite does not wish to be looked at," Zoe scoffed. "What would thy mother say?"  
Silena started to get out of her chair, but the Stoll brothers pulled her back.  
"Stop it," Beckendorf said. He was a big guy with a bigger voice. He didn't talk much, but when he did, people tended to listen. "Let's start with the Hunters. Which three of you will go?"  
Zoe stood. "I shall go, of course, and I will take Phoebe. She is our best tracker."  
"The big girl who likes to hit people on the head?" Travis Stoll asked cautiously.  
Zoe nodded.  
"The one who put the arrows in my helmet?" Connor added.  
"Yes," Zoe snapped. "Why?"  
"Oh, nothing," Travis said. "Just that we have a T-shirt for her from the camp store." He held up a big silver T-shirt that said ARTEMIS THE MOON GODDESS, FALL HUNTING TOUR 2002, with a huge list of national parks and stuff underneath. "It's a collector's item. She was admiring it. You want to give it to her?"  
Phoebe cleared her throat.  
"I'm right here you three"  
The Stolls laugh nervously, before shoving the poisoned Tee-shirt into the girl's hand.  
Phoebe simply scoffed and placed the silver tee over her shoulder. Percy didn't bring up that it was poisoned, but he was sure that Zoe would inform her friend of the nature of the tee.  
"As I was saying, I will take Phoebe. And I wish Bianca to go."  
Bianca looked stunned. "Me? But… I'm so new. I wouldn't be any good."  
"You will do fine," Zoe insisted. "There is no better way to prove thyself."  
Bianca closed her mouth.  
Percy widened his eyes and stared harshly into Zoe's volcanic orbs. Feeling the harsh gaze on her, Zoe met his fierce sea green eyes. Her eyes screamed for him to trust her.  
After fifteen tense seconds, Percy's gaze softened. He bit his lip nervously. It wouldn't matter... He had a plan. If his suspicions were true... He could save Bianca or anyone else on the quest.  
"And for campers?" Chiron asked. His eyes met Percy's, but he couldn't tell what the centaur was thinking.  
"Me!" Annabeth stood up so fast she bumped the Ping-Pong table. "I need to save my mother."  
Zoe nodded, but Percy felt apprehensive. The entire reason he had sneaked away to go on the quest was to save Annabeth. He was unsure of how he felt with Annabeth going on the quest that had put her in so much danger in the first place.  
"Very well," Zoe said. "And the second camper?"  
There was only one spot left on the quest. All he had to do was open his mouth before-  
"I'll go." Thalia stood and looked around, daring anyone to question her.  
Percy cursed under his breath. He was too slow. The only way he had gone on the quest the last time was because Phoebe had been pranked by the Stolls. He was unsure if the same would repeat.  
Bianca's eyes widened.  
"Wait." She said, "I'll stay. Percy should go."  
Percy's eyes widened yet again in shock. He hadn't expected the girl to speak up. Not at all.  
"He is probably one of the strongest demigods. He knows how to fight and he can use his powers."  
Zoe's eyes twinkled with delight. Was she planning this all along? Percy had no way of finding out.  
Zoe nodded, "Very well."  
Phoebe gained an aggressive expression, "He cannot," Phoebe said. "He is a boy. I won't have Hunters traveling with a boy."  
"You traveled here with me," Percy smugly reminded her, knowing full well that he was going to be rebuked. Surprisingly Phoebe uses the same words Zoe would've. Was all of it scripted? Percy would never know...  
"That was a short-term emergency, and it was ordered by the goddess. I will not go across country and fight many dangers in the company of a boy."  
Finally, Zoe spoke up, defending her friend, "Lay down Phoebe. Thy hatred for men blinds you to the benefits the son of Poseidon holds. He is indeed very powerful."  
The daughter of Ares looked at Zoe as though she had grown a third head, "What's up with you Zoe?! How can you defend a boy!"  
Zoe shook her head, "Trust thy lieutenant huntress." Her voice was stern yet soft.  
Phoebe reluctantly nodded her head, knowing full well that she had lost.  
Percy was actually rather happy with how to meeting had gone down. Bianca was saved from going in the quest with them. The only thing that disturbed Percy was Annabeth tagging along as well. He usually trusted his gut and his gut was giving him mad signals that things were going to happen. Bad things.

________________________________________  
Chapter 13: Paul  
________________________________________  
Percy had taken to conversing with Thalia after the whole ordeal at the ping-pong table.  
"Thalia," Chiron said, "perhaps you'd let me have a word with Percy?"  
"Sure," she said coolly.  
Chiron waited.  
"Oh," Thalia sheepishly said. "You mean alone. Sure, Chiron."  
She made her way out the door, brushing her raven hair out of her face.  
Chiron sighed and knelt on his horse legs. "Percy, I don't pretend to understand prophecies."  
"Yeah," Percy said. "Well, maybe that's because prophecies make no sense." It was true. Prophecies were absolute bull.  
Chiron gazed at the saltwater spring gurgling in the corner of the room. "Thalia would not have been my first choice to go on this quest. She's too impetuous. She acts without thinking. She is too sure of herself"  
"Would you have chosen me?" He knew the centaur's answer  
"Frankly, no," he said. "You and Thalia are much alike."  
"Thanks a lot."  
He smiled. "The difference is that you are less sure of yourself than Thalia. That could be good or bad. But one thing I can say: both of you together would be a dangerous thing."  
"We could handle it."  
"The way you handled it at the creek tonight?"  
Percy didn't answer. He'd nailed him to his coffin. Maybe taunting the daughter of Zeus hadn't been the best decision he had chosen to repeat, but he was not going to be a pushover to Thalia.  
He pulled Riptide out of his pocket and set it on his nightstand.  
When Chiron saw the pen, the centaur grimaced. "It's no wonder Phoebe doesn't want you along, I suppose. Not while you're carrying that particular weapon."  
Percy understood what he meant. The sword and Zoe went far back. The sword was effectively a key part in Zoe's origin story.  
Chiron pulled a golden drachma from his saddlebag and tossed it to Percy. "Call your mother, Percy. Let her know you're going to be gone for the quest. And, ah, for what it's worth… I almost volunteered for this quest myself. I would have gone, if not for the last line."  
"One shall perish by a parent's hand. Yeah."  
He didn't need to ask. He knew Chiron's dad was Kronos, the evil Titan Lord himself. The line would make perfect sense if Chiron went on the quest. Kronos didn't care for anyone, including his own children.  
"Chiron," Percy said. "You know what this Titan's curse is, don't you?"  
His face darkened. He made a claw over his heart and pushed outward—an ancient gesture for warding off evil. "Let us hope the prophecy does not mean what I think. Now, good night, Percy. And your time will come. I'm convinced of that. There's no need to rush."  
But Percy knew that Chiron was right. He knew exactly what the Prophecy would entail with that specific line. Percy knew that Chiron knew.  
Percy stood at the saltwater spring, rubbing Chiron's coin in his hand and trying to figure out what to say to his mom.  
Finally, he took a deep breath and threw in the coin. "O goddess, accept my offering."  
The mist shimmered. The light from the bathroom was just enough to make a faint rainbow.  
"Show me Sally Jackson," He said. "Upper East Side, Manhattan."  
And there in the mist was a scene He fully expected. His mother was sitting at their kitchen table with Paul Blofis. They were laughing hysterically. There was a big stack of textbooks between them. The man was, thirty-something, with longish salt-and-pepper hair and a brown jacket over a black T-shirt. He looked like an actor—like a guy who might play an undercover cop on television.  
Percy chose to not say anything, and fortunately, his mom and Paul were too busy laughing to notice my Iris-message.  
The guy said, "Sally, you're a riot. You want some more wine?"  
"Ah, I shouldn't. You go ahead if you want."  
"Actually, I'd better use your bathroom. May I?"  
"Down the hall," she said, trying not to laugh.  
The actor dude smiled and got up and left.  
"Mom!" he said.  
She jumped so hard she almost knocked her textbooks off the table. Finally, she focused on him. "Percy! Oh, honey! Is everything okay?"  
"What are you doing?" He demanded playfully. He missed his mother.  
She blinked. "Homework." Then she seemed to understand the look on my face. "Oh, honey, that's just Paul—um, Mr. Blofis. He's in my writing seminar."  
"Mr. Blowfish?" Percy could crack that joke till the end of his days.  
"Blofis. He'll be back in a minute, Percy. Tell me what's wrong."  
She always knew when something was wrong. I told her about the quest. The other stuff too.  
My mother's eyes teared up. He could tell she was trying hard to keep it together for his sake. "Oh, Percy…"  
She took a deep breath and smiled at his, "Stay safe Percy."  
Percy nodded, "Bye Mom"  
The toilet flushed down the hall in the apartment.  
"I don't have much time," Sally said. "Percy, whatever you decide, I love you. And I know you'll do what's best.  
And with that, his mother waved her hand over the mist, and the connection dissolved, leaving him with one final image of her new friend, Mr. Blowfish, smiling down at her.  
________________________________________  
Percy didn't remember falling asleep, but he remembered the dream.  
He was in a barren cave, the ceiling heavy and low above him. A young girl was kneeling under the weight of a dark mass that looked like a pile of boulders. She was too tired even to cry out. Her legs trembled. Any second, Percy knew she would run out of strength and the cavern ceiling would collapse on top of her.  
"How is our mortal guest?" a male voice boomed.  
It wasn't Kronos. Kronos's voice was raspy and metallic, like a knife scraped across stone. Percy’s heard it taunting him many times before in his dreams. And their fight at Mount Olympus couldn’t be forgotten. But this voice was deeper and lower, like a bass guitar. Its force made the ground vibrate.  
Luke emerged from the shadows. He ran to the girl, knelt beside her, then looked back at the unseen man. "She's fading. We must hurry."  
The hypocrite. Like he really cared what happened to the girl.  
The deep voice chuckled. It belonged to someone in the shadows, at the edge of my dream. Then a meaty hand thrust someone forward into the light—Athena—her hands and feet bound in celestial bronze chain. Her dress was torn and tattered. Athena's face and arms were cut in several places, and she was bleeding ichor, the golden blood of the gods.  
"You heard the boy," said the man in the shadows. "Decide!"  
Athena's eyes flashed with anger.  
The goddess looked at the young girl and her expression changed to concern and outrage. "How dare you torture a maiden goddess like this!"  
"She will die soon," Luke said. "You can save her."  
The girl made a weak sound of protest.  
"Free my hands," Athena said.  
Luke brought out his sword, Backbiter. With one expert strike, he broke the goddess's handcuffs.  
Artemis ran to the girl and took the burden from her shoulders. She collapsed on the ground and lay there shivering. Athena staggered, trying to support the weight of the black rocks.  
The man in the shadows chuckled. "You are as predictable as you were easy to beat, Athena."  
"You surprised myself and Artemis, and tricked us with your little pet Luke," the goddess said, straining under her burden. "It will not happen again."  
"Indeed, it will not," the man said. "Now you are out of the way for good! I knew you could not resist helping a young maiden. That is, after all, your specialty, my dear."  
Athena groaned "You know nothing of mercy, you swine."  
"On that," the man said, "we can agree. Luke, you may kill the girl now."  
"No!'" Athena shouted. It was too late, Luke swung backbiter with all his strength and severed the girl's head from her shoulders. Percy awoke from the gruesome sight in a cold sweat. History had truly repeated and Athena was trapped under the sky. They would need to hurry if they wanted to save the goddess...

________________________________________  
Chapter 14: Drive  
________________________________________  
Zoe was glad for a blissful night of dreamless sleep. Luckily, she hadn't been haunted by nightmares of the oracle and visions of her lady. It was much different to what had occurred the first time she got a visit from the spectral being.  
Her morning started off regularly enough. Besides the fact that their lieutenant was about to embark on a potentially life-threatening quest, the hunters were spending a rather normal morning of them in camp. Just the usual small talk, with plans of burning down the other cabins thrown in here and there, or beating up an annoying male. Pretty normal for her hunters.  
But it was one thing that struck Zoe as odd. Her closest ally, Phoebe was bedridden. Bianca was seated beside the daughter of Ares, placing a damp wash-cloth on her forehead. Zoe approached and placed her hand on the other girl's forehead. She was burning up!  
It was going to be problematic. Phoebe was supposed to be the one to embark on the quest along with them. Maybe fate decided that this was something that wasn't meant to change. Maybe Phoebe was never fated to go on the quest with Zoe.  
Zoe could only think of one reason for a hunter, an immortal maiden to have a burning fever. The Stolls. They must have figured out that their prank had failed and had somehow managed to re-prank the daughter of Ares. Zoe cursed herself for being too careless.  
Zoe's second surprise of the day came from their newest recruit, Bianca.  
"I'll take her place."  
Zoe was surprised by the usually meek girl's confident statement.  
"Are you sure Bianca? I can get another hunter to go if thee are not feeling ready."  
Zoe really didn't want Bianca's death on her conscience for a second time.  
The younger girl shook her head, her deep black hair, done up in a low ponytail bobbing left to right.  
"You convinced me that I needed to go on the quest. I guess what you said to me yesterday just got to me. I need to prove to you and the hunters that I am worthy to join you."  
It was true. Zoe had spoken with the pale skinned girl on the previous day. She had somehow managed to convince the younger girl that she would need to attend the quest to prove herself to the hunters.  
Zoe knew she was trapped. She couldn't just not allow the girl to replace Phoebe. That would raise far too many questions. Weighing the situation, Zoe sighed and nodded, allowing the girl to be the fifth member of the quest.  
Now the only thing left would be convincing Percy that Bianca would have to replace Phoebe. Zoe knew the boy had blamed himself about the death of the younger girl. If she died again, then the boy would be devastated. Zoe needed to find a loophole. She needed to prevent Bianca from losing her life. If for no other reason than to prevent the son of Poseidon from getting upset.  
Zoe widened her eyes. She couldn't believe her own thoughts. Did she just admit to herself that she would only save Bianca's life to not upset a boy!  
Zoe needed a shower to clear her mind...  
________________________________________  
They would be leaving for the quest after breakfast at the pavilion. Zoe nervously walked into the pavilion. She needed to speak with the son of Poseidon. She needed to explain to him about the predicament they were in.  
He was seated alone at the Poseidon table.  
The conversation had gone better than she had expected. He had simply sighed and said that maybe fate needed to go its own way. Zoe had a sneaking suspicion that he might've had a visit by certain trio of sisters.  
Zoe wished him luck and made her way back to the hunters.  
"How did he take it?"  
It was Bianca. Zoe had lied to her and said that Percy wouldn't want her going on the quest because she was too young and inexperienced. She hadn't called to bluff.  
"The boy took it far better than expected. Stay safe huntress."  
Zoe had lost her appetite. Grabbing onto a plate of food for Phoebe, she made her way back to her cabin. The daughter of Ares was sitting up.  
"Atlanta told me that you're taking Bianca on the quest."  
Phoebe's voice was hoarse, as though it hurt for her to talk.  
"Thou art unwell Phoebe. Rest thine body."  
Zoe placed Phoebe's food on her bed.  
The girl simply huffed. It hurt her far too much to speak. She understood. Zoe was sure.  
________________________________________  
The following few hours were a blur for Zoe. He had taken the liberties to pack for both herself and Bianca. They were on a white Camp Half-Blood van. The road was getting pelted with icy cold rain. Zoe was glad she was inside the van and not outside.  
Percy had offered to drive first. Zoe didn't object.  
Percy was a surprisingly good driver. Zoe didn't really know how far he had travelled in to the past from his time. Zoe simply assumed that it was probably sometime after her death but for all she knew he could mentally be years older. She would have to ask him when she gets the chance.  
They had driven half way into New Jersey when they decided to pull over and warm up in a small cafe.  
The building resembled a wooden cabin and had a rather cozy feeling about it.  
Thalia and Annabeth had ordered hot chocolate with two marshmallows each.  
Bianca went with plain milk. She also ordered a pink frosted sprinkled donut.  
Zoe chose some hot coffee. She was next up to drive, and she would need the caffeine in her system.  
Percy, after some contemplation decided to have some blueberry and strawberry tea. The boy was exhausted but looked at the red tea with glee, sipping it and enjoying his favorite array of flavors. He had driven them for the last three hours, travelling the best part of 100 miles. It could have been quicker, but the heavy rains hindered their momentum quite a bit.  
He deserved some rest as these past few days had seemingly strained the demigod. Zoe was fully sure that he was going to crash into the back of the van and knock himself out.  
While Thalia and Annabeth spoke with Bianca, Zoe decided to make conversation with Percy.  
Of course, the first thing she had brought up was Bianca di Angelo. Percy simply sighed and said that he had something planned. His fist was clenched and he stared intently into the vibrant red concoction he was drinking.  
"We should still go to the Smithsonian. Atlas may let slip some information that could be useful, and let's not forget that the Lions pelt could easily save a life."  
Zoe nodded. The museum would actually be useful. Sure, it was life risking. But as they now knew the lion’s weakness and that Atlas was going to be there any information could be lifesaving down the line.  
Percy took another long sip from his tea. His stormy green eyes stared straight into Zoe's volcanic black.  
"Your aura reminds me of Calypso." Percy spoke in a reminiscent tone.  
Zoe's eyes widened. Percy had been to Ogygia. Zoe knew of the myths surrounding the mystical island. Zoe seriously began to wonder how much more had the boy in front of her witnessed in his short life.  
"She is my half-sister"  
Percy chuckled softly. His vibrant eyes shone with mirth, and Zoe had to pull herself away from the enticing sight. She had to mentally slap herself to prevent her from getting lost in his pools of magnificent green. Zoe wondered what her mistress would do if she knew of the thoughts Zoe was having about the boy.  
"May I taste thine tea?"  
She didn't know where that came from. She chalked it up to her curiosity getting the better of her.  
Laughing softly, they boy handed over his cup to the girl.  
The huntress tentatively sipped from the cup. The beverage was not bad at all. The leaf balance was just right, and the blueberry and strawberry mixture brought forth an exquisite taste.  
Taking another sip, Zoe handed the drink back to the boy.  
"It's nice."  
No one spoke. They were enveloped in a comfortable silence.  
The group left the cafe, their thirst sated and warmth comforting them.

________________________________________  
Chapter 15: Jealous  
________________________________________  
Annabeth was rather surprised when she witnessed the interaction between the huntress and her best friend Percy. The two broke away from the rest and conversed with each other to the point where the hunter’s ideology of being a biased male hating feminist was thrown out of the window. They spoke as if they had known each forever.  
In all honesty Annabeth was highly suspicious of Artemis' lieutenant. Whilst Percy was definitely special and different in comparison to other guys, but it was hard to understand how he had managed to befriend the hunter, but not just any hunter, one of the oldest hunters who led the band of dangerous women.  
Annabeth was slightly jealous of Zoe and couldn't deny it. Zoe had simply swooped in and Percy had seemingly fallen for her. Annabeth rubbed her temples of her head and sighed. Thalia looked at her funny, but Annabeth ignored her.  
They had been on the road for several hours and decided to take a break at a quiet little cafe. They all ordered a beverage of choice, and once again Zoe had kidnapped Percy, which had of course miffed Annabeth. Her mind began wondering as to what they may have been conversing about. She was wanting to put on her cap, turn invisible and listen in on their conversation, and decided it wouldn’t be the best course of action, leaving their privacy to the two.  
Thalia simply silently sipped at her chocolaty drink and stared at Annabeth with amusement shining in her electric blue eyes. “Someone’s feeling jealous." Thalia smirked at the girl, her voice heavy with her usual teasing tone.  
Annabeth of course vehemently denied the claim, almost knocking Bianca over, who had taken to simply enjoy her donut on the sidelines. A few more moments were spent like that, and the uncanny group decided to bid farewell to the kind cafe owner. It was the huntress' turn to drive. Thalia took her usual jab at her, claiming that the girl barely looked to be fourteen. The huntress simply rebuked with the fact that she was in fact thousands of years old and had driven motorcars since their creation. That seemed to shut the feisty daughter of Zeus up for a bit.  
Zoe climbed aboard the driver's seat and Percy took shotgun. The three remaining girls took the back. It hardly took five minutes for the son of Poseidon to be knocked out cold.  
Zoe had informed them not long after words that they were heading to the Smithsonian. While Annabeth couldn't help but be exited at their destination, she couldn't help but address the elephant in the room.  
"Why?"  
Zoe froze, almost like she had been hoping the question wouldn't be asked. Annabeth narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "My Lady has informed me that there is something we must do over there. It involves the Titans general."  
Annabeth nodded, it was a plausible scenario, but Zoe's first reaction still made her wary.  
The detour towards the museum was long. Annabeth gave up on consciousness a hundred miles into the drive. At least she would get two additional hours of much needed sleep…  
________________________________________  
When Annabeth awoke from her sleep, she was greeted with the Potomac River. The van was crossing into central Washington. Zoe parked the van a few blocks away from the Washington Monument.  
The five got off the van, and stretched their sore limbs. As they began walking Percy spoke out.  
"Zoe, I've left my drink in the van, pass the keys please." Zoe simply nodded and threw the keys back to him which Percy easily caught it. Annabeth wondered if Zoe realized that Percy didn't really have a drink with him when he boarded the van...  
Annabeth slowed down and began to wait for Percy, it took a moment and she saw how he was no longer at the van. She looked around in worry but calmed down once she spotted him. He was moving towards the museum of natural history, and then she noticed why. There was a black sedan, and a group had evidently just left the car. There was a man she recognized instantly. He was wearing dark shades, had gray hair in a military buzz cut, and had a heavy overcoat, he spoke in a phone and too, was walking to the museum. It was Dr. Thorn. She put her invisibility cap, and simply began following Percy.  
Her body was in overdrive, her senses heightened, adrenaline pumping through her veins, as she entered the building she watched as Percy went through doors where a sign said CLOSED FOR PIRATE EVENT. She blinked a couple times and realized it was CLOSED FOR PRIVATE EVENT. The chamber was filled with fossils, and artefacts, she almost gasped at what she saw, which would have killed her.  
On the upper floor, a number of reptilian women monsters were watching below, 'Scythian Dracaena. But that wasn't the worse of it, on the lower floor next to Dr Thorn stood Luke. At least, it must have been, he had the same angry glint in his eyes, his blonde hair was now a dull grey, and the scar upon his face was menacing, with a red tinge as if it had been reopened. Sitting in front of him, was a giant of a man who sat on a throne, it must have been a titan.  
"Well?" The titan spoke, his voice booming as if the earth was shaking itself. It filled the whole room and yet, he wasn't shouting.  
Dr Thorn took off his shades, his two-colored eyes, brown and blue, glinted with excitement. He made a stiff bow before speaking in his French accent. "They are here General."  
"I know that you fool." His voice booming, tinged in anger. She looked over at Percy who seemed to wince as he hid in the shadows. "Where are they."  
"They are at the rocket museum my lord." Thorn spoke in fear.  
"The air and space museum general." Luke corrected irritated.  
"As you say sir..." Thorn spoke annoyed. Annabeth got the feeling that Thorn desperately wanted to impale Luke with one of his poisoned spikes.  
"How many." Luke asked impatiently. But Thorn simply ignored him.  
"Answer him Thorn" The general spoke out.  
"There are 5. The son of Poseidon, Spikey black hair, with the - what would you call it - punk clothes and that disgusting shield."  
"-Thalia-" Luke interrupted.  
"A daughter of Athena, and two hunters. One with the circlet..."  
"That one I know-" The general spoke.  
Annabeth glared, she was lucky that Thorn didn't notice her and Percy following him. But Zoe clearly knew who the Titan was and she could endanger this mission.  
Everyone in the room shifted uncomfortably. "Let me take them," Luke said to the General. "We have more than enough—"  
"Patience," the General said. "They'll have their hands full already. I've sent a little playmate to keep them occupied. The son of Poseidon has surprisingly grown in strength tremendously he can endanger our plans."  
"But—"  
"We cannot risk you, my boy."  
"Yes, boy," Dr. Thorn said with a cruel smile. "You are much too fragile to risk. Let me finish them off."  
"No." The General rose from his chair, and Annabeth got her first look at him.  
He was tall and muscular, with light brown skin and slicked-back dark hair. He wore an expensive brown silk suit like the guys on Wall Street wear, but you'd never mistake this dude for a broker. He had a brutal face, huge shoulders, and hands that could snap a flagpole in half. His eyes were like stone. I felt as if I were looking at a living statue. It was amazing he could even move.  
"You have already failed me, Thorn," he said.  
"But, General—"  
"No excuses!"  
Thorn flinched. Annabeth’s thought Thorn was scary when she first saw him in his black uniform at the military academy. But now, standing before the General, Thorn looked like a silly wannabe soldier. The General was the real deal. He didn't need a uniform. He was a born commander.  
"I should throw you into the pits of Tartarus for your incompetence," the General said. "I send you to capture a child of the three elder gods, and you bring me nothing!"  
"But you promised me revenge.'" Thorn protested. "A command of my own!"  
"I am Lord Kronos's senior commander," the General said. "And I will choose lieutenants who get me results! It was only thanks to Luke that we salvaged our plan at all. Now get out of my sight, Thorn, until I find some other menial task for you."  
Thorn's face turned purple with rage. Annabeth half expected him to start frothing at the mouth or shooting spines, but he just bowed awkwardly and left the room.  
"Now, my boy." The General turned to Luke. "The first thing we must do is isolate the half-blood Thalia. The monster we seek will then come to her."  
"The Hunters will be difficult to dispose of," Luke said. "Zoe Nightshade—"  
"Do not speak her name!"  
Luke swallowed. "S—sorry, General. I just—"  
The General silenced him with a wave of his hand. "Let me show you, my boy, how we will bring the Hunters down."  
He pointed to a guard on the ground level. "Do you have the teeth?"  
The guy stumbled forward with a ceramic pot. "Yes, General!"  
"Plant them," he said.  
In the center of the room was a big circle of dirt, where a dinosaur exhibit was supposed to go. Annabeth watched nervously as the guard took sharp white teeth out of the pot and pushed them into the soil. He smoothed them over while the General smiled coldly.  
The guard stepped back from the dirt and wiped his hands. "Ready, General!"  
"Excellent! Water them, and we will let them scent their prey."  
The guard picked up a little tin watering can with daisies painted on it, which was kind of bizarre, because what he poured out wasn't water. It was dark red liquid, and Annabeth got the feeling it wasn't Hawaiian Punch and most likely blood.  
The soil began to bubble.  
"Soon," the General said, "I will show you, Luke, soldiers that will make your army from that little boat look insignificant."  
Luke clenched his fists. "I've spent a year training my forces! When the Princess Andromeda arrives at the mountain, they'll be the best—"  
"Ha.'" the General said. "I don't deny your troops will make a fine honor guard for Lord Kronos. And you, of course, will have a role to play—"  
Luke turned paler when the General said that.  
"—but under my leadership, the forces of Lord Kronos will increase a hundredfold. We will be unstoppable. Behold, my ultimate killing machines."  
The soil erupted. Annabeth stepped back nervously.  
In each spot where a tooth had been planted, a creature was struggling out of the dirt. The first of them said:  
"Mew?"  
It was a kitten. A little orange tabby with stripes like a tiger. Then another appeared, until there was a dozen, rolling around and playing in the dirt.  
Everyone stared at them in disbelief. The General roared, "What is this? Cute cuddly kittens? Where did you find those teeth?" In the shadows, Annabeth noticed, Percy grinning like a fool. It was a surprise he hadn't been seen. Annabeth was veiled by her cap, but Percy simply relied on the shadows. It was almost as though he knew where everyone's eyes would fall. Namely, away from him...  
The guard who'd brought the teeth cowered in fear. "From the exhibit, sir! Just like you said. The saber-toothed tiger—"  
"No, you idiot! I said the tyrannosaurus! Gather up those… those infernal fuzzy little beasts and take them outside. And never let me see your face again." The terrified guard dropped his watering can. He gathered up the kittens and scampered out of the room.

________________________________________  
Chapter 16: Teeth  
________________________________________  
"You.'" The General pointed to another guard. "Get me the right teeth. NOW!"  
The new guard ran off to carry out his orders.  
"Imbeciles,' muttered the General.  
"This is why I don't use mortals," Luke said. "They are unreliable, and pathetic."  
"They are weak-minded, easily bought, and violent," the General said. "I love them."  
A minute later, the guard hustled into the room with his hands full of large pointy teeth.  
"Excellent," the General said. He climbed onto the balcony railing and jumped down, twenty feet.  
Where he landed, the marble floor cracked under his leather shoes. He stood, wincing, and rubbed his shoulders. "Curse my stiff neck."  
"Another hot pad, sir?" a guard asked. "More Tylenol?"  
"No! It will pass." The General brushed off his silk suit, then snatched up the teeth. "I shall do this myself."  
He held up one of the teeth and smiled. "Dinosaur teeth—ha! Those foolish mortals don't even know when they have dragon teeth in their possession. And not just any dragon teeth. These come from the ancient Sybaris herself! They shall do nicely."  
He planted them in the dirt, twelve in all. Then he scooped up the watering can. He sprinkled the soil with red liquid, tossed the can away, and held his arms out wide. Rise! The dirt trembled. A single, skeletal hand shot out of the ground, grasping at the air.  
The General looked up at the balcony. "Quickly, do you have the scent?" He turned to Luke, "Do you have anything of Jackson's, we must eradicate him, remove him from the Olympians arsenal."  
"Yesssss, lord," one of the snake ladies said. She took out a sash of silvery fabric, like the kind the Hunters wore. And simultaneously Luke took out one of Percy's old camp t-shirts. Percy dumbly wondered how the demigod had managed to steal one. It took him approximately three seconds when he realized what he had just said. Luke was a son of Hermes, God of Thieves...  
"Excellent," the General said. "Once my warriors catch its scent, they will pursue its owner relentlessly. Nothing can stop them, no weapons known to half-blood or Hunter. They will tear the Hunters and their allies to shreds. Toss it here!"  
As he said that, skeletons erupted from the ground. There were twelve of them, one for each tooth the General had planted. They were nothing like Halloween skeletons, or the kind you might see in cheesy movies. These were growing flesh as Percy watched, turning into men, but men with dull gray skin, yellow eyes, and modern clothes—gray muscle shirts, camo pants, and combat boots. If you didn't look too closely, you could almost believe they were human, but their flesh was transparent and their bones shimmered underneath, like X-ray images.  
One of them looked straight at a wall near Percy, almost catching him in its line of sight.  
The snake lady released the scarf and it fluttered down toward the General's hand. As the general looked at his Sparti with a grin, Luke threw the t-shirt at the Sparti. Percy made a mad dash. The general threw the scarf but it was caught by the son of Poseidon. He sprinted straight to the other exit as the general roared. Just as Percy was about the exit, a loud crash alerted him.  
"SEAL THE DOORS, THERES ANOTHER INTRUDER. ONE CLOAKED IN INVISIBILITY." The general roared.  
"Annabeth!" Percy cursed under his breath. How hadn't he noticed her following him? Well, it was a given that she was invisible but still... The situation was very dangerous. Annabeth didn't have his experience. He knew where to hide. She didn't. And he knew for a fact that Annabeth's cap wouldn't fool the Sparti.  
"It must be Annabeth. Don't harm her, she can be a useful bargaining chip." Luke yelled.  
Percy continued on his sprint. He had very limited time and he had to make it to the Air and Space section of Museum before the Nemean Lion could get to his friends.  
________________________________________  
The good thing? The Sparti didn't get a whiff of Zoe's scarf.  
The bad thing? The sick perv had stolen one of Percy's old tee-shirts.  
Percy's thoughts were muddled as he sprinted through the museum. He had no idea where Annabeth was but he was sure she was headed she same direction. He tore across the Mall, not daring to look behind him. He burst into the Air and Space Museum, rushing past the admissions area. The main part of the museum was one huge room with rockets and airplanes hanging from the ceiling. Three levels of balconies curled around. The place wasn't crowded, just a few families and a couple of tour groups of kids.  
He ran into Thalia—literally. He was barreling up the ramp to the top-floor balcony and slammed into her, knocking her into an Apollo space capsule.  
Before he could regain my balance, Zoe and Bianca had arrows notched, aimed at my chest. Their bows had just appeared out of nowhere.  
When Zoe realized who he was, she lowered her bow, as did Bianca.  
"Well, you took your own sweet time. Can't imagine looking for your drink could take so much time.", Taunted Thalia.  
"Got caught up," Percy panted, turning towards Zoe he panted out, "The Sparti don't have your scent. I was able to grab this scarf before they got it."  
He pulled the length of fabric from his back pocket and gave it to Zoe. Zoe tentatively held the scarf as she shoved it into her pack whilst Thalia looked on in confusion.  
"-But they have my scent now..." He sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.  
The huntress' eyes widened as she glared at the boy. But she stopped after a while.  
Suddenly the air beside him shimmered as Annabeth faded into existence. "Did you tell them?" her voice was frantic.  
Percy glared at the blond.  
"Why did you follow me Annabeth?" He had a rough edge to his voice; honestly what Annabeth had done was stupid and reckless.  
The blonde grew defensive, "What do you mean? I am a part of this quest too! Honestly you were the careless one for going in without the invisibility cap."  
Percy's eyes slanted in anger. "I wasn't the one that knocked down the vase alerting Atlas to our position!"  
That didn't quiet the girl.  
"How did you know that the general was Atlas." Annabeth's words almost caused Percy to spit take. He noticed Zoe flinch at her father's name.  
"I told him the identity of the general. That is the whole reason we took this route, to spy on the titan's plans."  
Zoe came to the rescue. Percy almost sighed in relief but Annabeth's next words stopped him.  
"And how did you know that one of the titans would be in this exact location!?" Annabeth's face was red with anger.  
But before Zoe could retort, an earth-shattering roar broke them from their dispute.  
Below them, a few adults screamed. A little kid's voice screeched with delight: "Kitty!"  
Something enormous bounded up the ramp. It was the size of a pick-up truck, with silver claws and golden glittering fur. Percy had seen this monster once before. He'd glimpsed it briefly from a train. Now, up close and personal, it looked even bigger.  
"The Nemean Lion," Thalia said. "Don't move."  
The lion roared so loud it parted Percy's hair. Its fangs gleamed like stainless steel.  
"Separate on my mark," Zoe said. "Try to keep it distracted."  
"Until when?" Annabeth asked.  
"Until I think of a way to kill it. Go!" Zoe spoke. Of course, she knew how to do so but couldn't make it obvious that she did.  
Percy uncapped Riptide and rolled to the left. Arrows whistled past him, and Annabeth unsheathed her knife. Percy turned and saw Zoe and Bianca climbing the Apollo capsule. They were firing arrows, one after another, all shattering harmlessly against the lion’s metallic fur. The lion swiped the capsule and tipped it on its side, spilling the Hunters off the back. Annabeth let out a war cry as she feinted to charge at the lion, and the lion turned toward her, but Thalia stepped into its path, holding up Aegis, and the lion recoiled. "ROOOAAAR!"  
"Hi-yah!" Thalia said. "Back!"  
The lion growled and clawed the air, but it retreated as if the shield were a blazing fire.  
Percy saw the lion crouching, its leg muscles tensing. He'd seen enough cat fights in the alleys around his apartment in New York. He knew the lion was going to pounce.  
"Hey!" he yelled. He didn't know what he was thinking, but he charged the beast. Percy just wanted to get it away from his friends. He slashed with Riptide, a good strike to the flank that should've cut the monster into Meow Mix, but the blade just clanged against its fur in a burst of sparks.  
The lion raked at him with its claws, ripping off a chunk of his coat. Percy backed against the railing. It sprang at him, one thousand pounds of monster, and he had no choice but to turn and jump.  
He landed on the wing of an old-fashioned silver airplane, which pitched and almost spilled him to the floor, three stories below.  
A loud hiss broke his concentration.  
Turning towards the noise, Percy groaned in frustration.  
The Learnean Hydra stared back at him, all nine of its heads hissing at the son of Poseidon.  
Percy groaned as he charged at the beast. At least he remembered to pack a lighter.

________________________________________  
Chapter 17: Space  
________________________________________  
Zoe panted in exhaustion. She knew exactly how to defeat the lion, but no opportunity presented itself to the huntress. She remembered how they had managed to defeat the beast the last time around. Percy had shown a surprising level of thoughtfulness with him figuring out that the lion's weak point was the inside of its mouth.  
The problem was, Percy was rather busy trying not to die as nine heads snapped at him, threatening to bite him in half.  
Bianca fired arrow after arrow at the beast, but of course, that did nothing but anger the lion.  
Thalia stabbed at the lion with her spear, but that too, did not much.  
"Zoe!" Annabeth shouted. "Target the mouth!"  
Seemed like the daughter of Athena had started using her brain.  
The monster lunged at her. An arrow zipped past it, missing completely, and she was backed into a corner. The Nemean Lion growled and steadied itself on the spacecraft, but its weight was too much. One of the cords snapped. As the display swung down like a pendulum, the lion leaped off onto the model earth's North Pole.  
Zoe took the opportunity to distract the lion with an arrow to the eye. It bounced off the lion's impenetrable skin, but the arrow had the desired effect. Zoe charged at the lion, brandishing her hunting knives.  
"Annabeth!" Zoe yelled. "Clear the area!"  
The blonde demigod scampered away from the wall, leaving the lion alone with Zoe.  
Groups of kids were running around screaming. Annabeth tried to corral them away from the monster just as the other cord on the spaceship snapped and the exhibit crashed to the floor. Thalia dropped off the second-floor railing and landed across from me, on the other side of the globe. The lion regarded them both, trying to decide which of them to kill first.  
Bianca was above the two of them, bows ready, but they kept having to move around to get a good angle.  
"No clear shot!" The daughter of Hades yelled. "Get it to open its mouth more!"  
The lion snarled from the top of the globe.  
She looked around. Options. She needed…  
The gift shop. Percy had used some item in a silvery packing material to get to lion to keep its jaw open.  
"Thalia!" she called, "Keep it occupied."  
She nodded grimly.  
"Hi-yah!" She pointed her spear and a spidery arc of blue electricity shot out, zapping the lion in the tail.  
"ROOOOOOOAR!" The lion turned and pounced. Thalia rolled out of its way, holding up Aegis to keep the monster at bay, and she ran for the gift shop.  
"Where are you going Zoe!" Bianca yelled.  
The older huntress dashed into the shop, knocking over rows of T-shirts, jumping over tables full of glow-in-the-dark planets and space ooze. The sales lady didn't protest. She was too busy cowering behind her cash register.  
There! On the far wall—glittery silver packets. Whole racks of them. She scooped up every kind she could find and ran out of the shop with an armful.  
Zoe and Bianca were still showering arrows on the monster, but it was no good. The lion seemed to know better than to open its mouth too much. It snapped at Thalia, slashing with its claws. It even kept its eyes narrowed to tiny slits.  
Thalia jabbed at the monster and backed up. The lion pressed her.  
"Zoe," she called, "Whatever you're going to do—"  
The lion roared and swatted her like a cat toy, sending her flying into the side of a Titan rocket. Her head hit the metal and she slid to the floor.  
"Hey!" Zoe yelled at the lion. She was too far away to strike, so she hurled one of her hinting knives like a throwing knife. It bounced off the lion's side, but that was enough to get the monster's attention. It turned toward her and snarled. She remembered the son of Poseidon doing something similar the last time.  
There was only one way to get close enough. she charged, and as the lion leaped to intercept her, she chucked a space food pouch into its maw—a chunk of cellophane-wrapped, freeze-dried strawberry parfait.  
The lion's eyes got wide and it gagged like a cat with a hairball.  
"Bianca, get ready!" she yelled.  
Behind her, she could hear people screaming. Percy seemed to not be having too much of a problem facing off against the hydra. But the demigod wasn't fairing too well either. Annabeth was helping him keep the monster at bay. The Hydra was missing five heads, burnt stumps reminding it of the loss. But the four heads that remained snarled viciously and attacked the two, occasionally spitting venom that the two would barely avoid.  
Zoe's breath hitched as she got a brief flashback to Heracles. The lion and the hydra were two of his labors. It was almost as though her past demons were trying to catch up with her.  
She scrambled away from the lion. It managed to choke down the space food packet and looked at her with pure hate.  
"Snack time!" She wanted to yell, but she held her mouth. She wasn't going to end up copying every single thing the boy had done. But the knowledge was rather useful.  
It made the mistake of roaring at her, and she got an ice-cream sandwich in its throat. Fortunately, her accuracy was spot-on. Before the lion could stop gagging, she shot in two more flavors of ice cream and a freeze-dried spaghetti dinner.  
The lion's eyes bugged. It opened its mouth wide and reared up on its back paws, trying to get away from her.  
"Now!" she yelled.  
Immediately, arrows pierced the lion's maw—two, four, six. The lion thrashed wildly, turned, and fell backward. And then it was still.  
Alarms wailed throughout the museum. People were flocking to the exits. Security guards were running around in a panic with no idea what was going on.  
Zoe knelt at Thalia's side and helped her up. She seemed okay, just a little dazed. Bianca dropped from the balcony and landed next to Zoe.  
Zoe was rather surprised at herself for taking the lion on at close range. She, much like most of the hunt preferred to pelt their foes in a flurry of arrows.  
She lifted the pelt up; it was surprisingly light. The fur was smooth and soft. It didn't feel at all like something that could stop a blade. As she watched, the pelt shifted and changed into a coat—a full-length golden-brown duster.  
Thalia eyed her cautiously. "That was… an interesting strategy."  
"It worked."  
She didn't argue.  
Zoe then turned to face said demigod, who slashed yet again at one of the hydra's heads, lobbing it right off.  
Zoe decided to show off a little bit and fired an arrow straight to the lighter that Annabeth held in her fight hand. The arrow set itself on fire by flying straight through the open flame and pierced itself into the stump of the hydra's head.  
The burning arrow burnt the open wound before anyone could react.  
Turning towards her, Percy playfully rolled his eyes.  
"Show off," he muttered under his breath. He turned back around to face the hydra.  
The beast had two heads still snapping at anyone or anything that got too close.  
Percy hacked and slashed at the three headed serpent. He blocked and parried with the grace of a dancer, while he struck and swung with the force of a freight train.  
Zoe would have been lying if she told anyone that she wasn't absolutely mesmerized by the sight.  
By the time Zoe had finished staring at the boy, he had somehow managed to defeat the hydra. The monster dissolved into a flurry of golden dust.  
Percy walked up to her. Leaning in close to her ears, he whispered.  
"You stole my idea."  
Zoe burst out laughing, shocking everyone around her at the spontaneous laughter.  
"We have to get out of here," Annabeth said. "The security guards won't stay confused for long."  
"The security guards are not our biggest worry," Zoe said. "Look."  
Through the glass walls of the museum, she could see a group of men walking across the lawn. Gray men in gray camouflage outfits. They were too far away for us to see their eyes, but she could feel their gaze aimed straight at her.  
"Go," Percy said. "They'll be hunting me. I'll distract them."  
"No," Zoe said. "We go together."  
Percy sighed and ran after them.

________________________________________  
Chapter 18: Dream  
________________________________________  
Over the next half hour, all they thought about was getting away safely. They changed trains twice. Percy had no idea where they were going, but after a while they lost the helicopter.  
They had decided to ditch the van when they noticed the helicopters that surrounded the museum. The following chain of events had gone exactly the same as the previous time around.  
Unfortunately, when they finally got off the train, they found themselves at the end of the line, in an industrial area with nothing but warehouses and railway tracks. And snow. Lots of snow. It seemed much colder here.  
They wandered through the railway yard, thinking there might be another passenger train somewhere, but there were just rows and rows of freight cars, most of which were covered in snow, like they hadn't moved in years.  
A homeless guy was standing at a trash-can fire. they must've looked pretty pathetic, because he gave us a toothless grin and said, "Y'all need to get warmed up? Come on over!'  
Percy honestly wanted to laugh at how oblivious he had been. Already knowing the identity of the homeless man, he wondered how he hadn't caught on the last time.  
Apollo's hair, although grimy and dirty, still shone with a radiant glow, and his bright blue eyes hele thousands of years of knowledge.  
They huddled around his fire, Thalia's teeth were chattering. She said, "well this is g-g-g-great."  
"Maybe they should contact camp," Bianca said. "Chiron—"  
"No," Zoe said. "They cannot help us anymore. they must finish this quest ourselves."  
"You know," the homeless man said, "you're never completely without friends." His face was grimy and his beard tangled, but his expression seemed kindly. "You kids need a train going west?"  
"Yes, sir," Percy said. "You know of any?"  
He pointed one greasy hand.  
Suddenly Percy noticed a freight train, gleaming and free of snow. It was one of those automobile-carrier trains, with steel mesh curtains and a triple-deck of cars inside. The side of the freight train said SUN west LINE.  
"That's… convenient," Thalia said. "Thanks, uh…"  
She turned to the homeless guy, but he was gone. The trash can in front of us was cold and empty, as if he'd taken the flames with him.  
"I think his name was Fred." The boy couldn't help himself from uttering those words.  
Perseus was seated cold and alone in a probably very expensive sports-car on a train which was their ticket of going west without actually walking! Percy mean- imagine four tired looking teenagers, -led by one in a silver parka with a bow slung over her shoulder to top it all off- in battered clothing walking all the way from Long Island, New York to the west... Their destination was rather ambiguous... All they knew was that they had to move west.  
Well... ambiguous to anyone who wasn't Percy or Zoe. He knew perfectly well that their destination was of course Mount Tamalpais, the Garden of the Hesperides.  
As Percy watched the sun go down, Percy was afraid to go to sleep. He was worried about what he might dream.  
"Oh, don't be afraid of dreams," a voice said right next to me.  
He looked over. Percy wasn't surprised to find the homeless guy from the rail yard sitting in the shotgun seat. His jeans were so worn out they were almost white. His coat was ripped, with stuffing coming out. He looked kind of like a teddy bear that had been run over by a truck.  
"If it weren't for dreams," he said, "I wouldn't know half the things I know about the future. They're better than Olympus tabloids." He cleared his throat, then held up his hands dramatically:  
"Dreams like a podcast,  
Downloading truth in my ears.  
They tell me cool stuff"  
"Apollo" Percy wasn't guessing. He actually knew the identity of the man beside him.  
He put his finger to his lips. "I'm incognito. Call me Fred."  
"A god named Fred?"  
"Eh, well… Zeus insists on certain rules. Hands off, when there's a human quest. Even when something really major is wrong. But nobody messes with my baby sister. Nobody."  
"Can you help us, then?"  
"Shhh. I already have. Haven't you been looking outside?"  
"The train. How fast are they moving?" As fast as the sun across the sky. He knew the answer.  
Apollo chuckled. "Fast enough. Unfortunately, they're running out of time. It's almost sunset. But I imagine they'll get you across a good chunk of America, at least."  
"But where is Athena?" Another question he knew the answer to. He had to keep up appearances.  
His face darkened. "I know a lot, and I see a lot. But even I don't know that. She's… clouded from me. I don't like it."  
"What about the monster Artemis was seeking?" Percy asked. "It's the Ophiotaurus, isn't it?"  
Apollo checked his watch. "Ah, look at the time! I have to run. I doubt I can risk helping you again, Percy, but remember what I said! Get some sleep! And when you return, I expect a good haiku about your journey!"  
He wanted to protest that he wasn't tired and He'd never made up a haiku in his life, but Apollo snapped his fingers, and the next thing Percy knew, he was closing his eyes.  
He expected his dream to remain the same... He expected to see himself in the gigantic boots of Heracles as Zoe offered him Anaklusmos.  
Instead his dream was different. Completely different...  
________________________________________  
He was himself. That much was obvious.  
He could see himself in the mirror in front of him.  
He was still in his own body. He looked the almost exactly the same as before he was sent back in time.  
He seemed to look older, probably around sixteen.  
There was one more thing different.  
His hair was longer, almost falling to his shoulders.  
A single gray streak framed his face on the left side.  
Percy looked around, he seemed to be back in his own house.  
He was wearing regular clothes.  
A nice blue button-up shirt and navy-blue formal trousers. Almost as though he was dressed for a date.  
A pair of tan coppery arms enveloped his form.  
He couldn't see the face.  
"You ready?"  
Her voice- it obviously belonged to a girl- was familiar, but the boy couldn't put a finger on it.  
"Yeah."  
Percy mumbled into the figure's dark hair.  
The girl's hair had a gray streak too.  
He took a deep breath but smelt nothing.  
He could smell nothing in his dream.  
He idly remembered Annabeth mentioning something similar to not having all five of your senses in a dream.  
"Today is going to be best day ever!"  
The girl's voice was- Chirpy. Alive. Happy.  
Still familiar...  
"Of course, it's gonna be great! It's our one-year anniversary!"  
The girl giggled.  
"You make it sound as though we are already married!"  
Her voice was teasing.  
"I plan on it"  
Percy's smirk caught the girl off guard.  
"I love you, Percy!"  
He smiled at her, completely turning around.  
He stared deep into her pitch-black eyes.  
The color of volcanic rocks.  
"I love you too... Zoe"  
________________________________________  
Chapter 19: Shot  
________________________________________  
Zoe had no idea what was getting into her.  
She should be enjoying a few moments of much needed rest.  
She couldn't sleep.  
She should have stayed in the Lexus with Bianca.  
She could have gone anywhere but here.  
But here she was, looking hesitantly towards the deep red Lamborghini that housed a certain son of Poseidon…  
Taking another hesitant step forward, she brought herself the courage to lightly tap the window of the sports car.  
"The door's unlocked," came a mumbled reply. It didn't sound like the boy had been asleep  
She wondered if he had gotten any sleep either, considering it was probably already a little past three in the morning.  
Zoe slowly opened the door, to reveal the boy. His back was towards her, revealing his dark messy hair to the girl.  
She slid into the seat beside the boy.  
"Zoe?" His voice seemed to be an odd mixture of confusion and glee.  
"Couldn't sleep." She wasn't lying.  
The boy nodded his head, "Um... I don't mean to be rude, but what are you doing here?"  
Zoe didn't know the answer to the question herself.  
"Bianca snores like a hippocampus giving birth," she found herself saying.  
Lies.  
"That explains everything."  
Zoe could catch the sarcastic undertone in his voice.  
"Couldn't sleep?" This time she directed her words to the boy.  
He nodded, "Dreams."  
Zoe tilted her head to the side, in both confusion and curiosity, "What did thou dream about?"  
Percy's cheeks changed into a tinted peculiar shade of red, "You."  
Zoe's eyes widened, as a scarlet flush began to appear upon her face.  
Percy quickly explained, "Well, actually it was of you and Heracles. When you first gave him Riptide to fight Ladon."  
Zoe could sense that that wasn't the entire truth.  
Her blush died down as a scowl graced her expression. She did not hold fond thoughts about the arrogant sin of Zeus.  
Deciding to change the topic, Zoe decided to bring up a different point of discussion.  
"What do we do about Bianca?"  
Percy stiffened.  
"I have a plan."  
He obviously chose not to elaborate, so the girl didn't pry.  
Zoe took off her jacket.  
"One of the Sparti will shoot thee. Protect thyself."  
She placed the jacket between them, for him to pick up.  
He did so wordlessly, avoiding her glance.  
The rest of the night was spent in semi-comfortable silence.  
________________________________________  
When dawn broke, they arrived on the outskirts of a little ski town nestled in the mountains. The sign said WELCOME TO CLOUDCROFT, NEW MEXICO. The air was cold and thin. The steep roofs of the cabins were heaped with snow, and dirty mounds of it were piled up on the sides of the streets. Tall pine trees loomed over the valley, casting pitch-black shadows, though the morning was sunny.  
Percy was freezing by the time they had reached Main Street, which was about a half mile from the train tracks. The jacket he wore did minimal to protect him from the cold.  
At least... That is what Zoe assumed, by from constant shivering.  
They stopped in the middle of town. One could pretty much see everything from there: a school, a bunch of tourist stores and cafes, some ski cabins, and a grocery store.  
"Great," Thalia said, looking around. "No bus stations. No taxis. No car rental. No way out."  
"There's a coffee shop!" Annabeth exclaimed, trying to lighten the mood.  
"Yes," Zoe said. "Coffee is good."  
She really liked coffee.  
Thalia sighed. "Fine. How about you two go get us some food. Percy, Bianca, and I will check out the grocery store. Maybe they can give us directions."  
They agreed to meet back in front of the grocery store in fifteen minutes.  
Zoe and Annabeth made their way to the cafe in awkward silence.  
Zoe knew the blonde wanted to speak, but was holding her tongue. She was tempted to ask the girl what she was thinking, but decided against it.  
Annabeth opened the doors to the cafe, revealing a nearly run down joint.  
The paint was peeling off the walls and the booths were barren from compatriots.  
A lone teenaged boy stood by the counter, looking bored out of his mind.  
Zoe placed the orders, while Annabeth excused herself to use the rest room.  
After receiving their food, they made their way back to the group, bags dangling from their hands.  
Once they were done with their coffee and cakes, Zoe spoke up.  
"We should keep moving." she said. "Those skeleton warriors would be following us."  
She summoned her bow to her hand, in anticipation of an incoming confrontation. She looked around as if she were being followed. "We have to get out of here."  
They made it to the edge of the town before the first two skeleton warriors appeared. They stepped from the trees on either side of the road.  
Instead of gray camouflage, they now wore blue New Mexico State Police uniforms, but they still had the same transparent gray skin and yellow eyes.  
They drew their handguns.  
Thalia tapped her bracelet. Aegis spiraled to life on her arm, but the undead warriors didn't flinch. Their glowing yellow eyes bored right into Percy.  
Percy drew Riptide.  
Zoe and Bianca drew their bows.  
"Back up," Thalia said.  
They started to—but then Percy heard a rustling of branches. Two more skeletons appeared on the road behind them, blocking their only escape route.  
They were surrounded.  
One of the warriors raised a cellular phone to his mouth and spoke into it.  
Except he wasn't speaking. He made a clattering, clicking sound, like dry teeth on bone. The skeletons must have split up to look for them. These skeletons were now calling their brethren.  
Soon they'd have a full party on their hands.  
"We'll have to go one-on-one," Thalia said. "Four of them. Four of us. Bianca, stay back with your bow."  
"Agreed," said Zoe.  
A warm wind blew through the canyon, rustling the trees, but Zoe kept her eyes on the skeletons.  
And charged.  
Whilst, she was more proficient at archery than with her knives, she also knew that the skeletons had the advantage with their revolvers.  
Zoe cleanly sliced through the skeleton she charged at. Her ability with her blades honed over the past few millenniums.  
Zoe turned, just as a skeleton drew a baton. Before she could react, Percy sliced off his arms at the elbows. Then he swung Riptide through the monster's waist and cutting him in half.  
The bones unknit and clattered to the asphalt in a heap. Almost immediately, they began to move, reassembling themselves. The second skeleton clattered his teeth at Percy and tried to fire, but Percy knocked the firearm into the snow.  
Then, one of the other skeletons pointed its gun at the son of Poseidon, and fired.  
"Percy!" Thalia screamed.  
The boy was sent to back, splattering to the ground.  
But something was wrong. The bullet hadn't touched the jacket.  
The jacket didn't save Percy...  
Then why wasn't he bleeding?

________________________________________  
Chapter 20: Curse  
________________________________________  
Inside the store, they found out a few valuable things about Cloudcroft: there wasn't enough snow for skiing, the grocery store sold rubber rats for a dollar each, and there was no easy way in or out of town unless you had your own car.  
"You could call for a taxi from Alamogordo," the clerk suggested doubtfully. "That's down at the bottom of the mountain, and it would take at least an hour to get here. Cost several hundred dollars."  
The clerk looked so lonely, Percy bought a rubber rat. Then we headed back outside and stood on the porch.  
"Wonderful," Thalia grumped. "I'm going to walk down the street, see if anybody in the other shops has a suggestion."  
"But the clerk said—"  
"I know," she told me. "I'm checking anyway."  
Percy let her go. He knew how it felt to be restless. All half-bloods had attention deficit problems because of their inborn battlefield reflexes. They couldn't stand just waiting around.  
Bianca and Percy stood awkwardly outside the store.  
"Nice rat," she said at last.  
He set it on the porch railing. Maybe it would attract more business for the store.  
"So… how do you like being a Hunter so far?" He asked.  
She pursed her lips. "You're not still mad at me for joining, are you?"  
"Nah. Long as, you know… you're happy."  
"I'm not sure 'happy' is the right word, with Lady Artemis gone. But being a Hunter is definitely cool. I feel calmer somehow. Everything seems to have slowed down around me. I guess that's the immortality."  
Percy stared at her. She did seem more confident than before, more at peace. She didn't hide her face under a green cap anymore. She kept her hair tied back, and she looked him right in the eyes when she spoke.  
"Nico didn't understand my decision," Bianca murmured. She looked at Percy like she wanted assurance it was okay.  
"He'll be all right," he replied. "Camp Half-Blood takes in a lot of young kids. They did that for Annabeth."  
She nodded in distress, "You risked your life to save my brother and me. I mean, that was seriously brave. If I hadn't met you, I wouldn't have felt okay about leaving Nico at the camp. I figured if there were people like you there, Nico would be fine. You're a good guy."  
A couple hundred yards away, Annabeth and Zoe came out of the coffee shop loaded down with pastry bags and drinks.  
"So, what's the story with you and Nico?" Percy asked her. "Where did you go to school before Westover?"  
Of course, he already knew the answer. He was simply making conversation.  
She frowned. "I think it was a boarding school in D.C. It seems like so long ago."  
"You never lived with your parents? I mean, your mortal parent?"  
"We were told our parents were dead. There was a bank trust for us. A lot of money, I think. A lawyer would come by once in a while to check on us. Then Nico and I had to leave that school."  
"Why?"  
She knit her eyebrows. "We had to go somewhere. I remember it was important. We traveled a long way. And we stayed in this hotel for a few weeks. And then… I don't know. One day a different lawyer came to get us out. He said it was time for us to leave. He drove us back east, through D.C. Then up into Maine. And we started going to Westover."  
"So, you've been raising Nico pretty much all your life." It was more of a statement, than a question. "Just the two of you?"  
She nodded. "That's why I wanted to join the Hunters so bad. I mean, I know it's selfish, but I wanted my own life and friends. I love Nico—don't get me wrong—I just needed to find out what it would be like not to be a big sister twenty-four hours a day."  
Before we could continue our conversation, Zoe and Annabeth arrived not moments after with the drinks and pastries. Thalia returned soon after, attracted by the warm inviting smells.  
He and Bianca received hot chocolates, while the others got a coffee each.  
Percy picked out his blueberry muffin, as the others each took their pick from the different flavors: Annabeth took strawberry, Bianca got chocolate and Thalia chose vanilla.  
Zoe chose more coffee...  
________________________________________  
The skeleton drew a baton and Percy sliced off his arms at the elbows. He then swung Riptide at the monster's waist and cutting it in half.  
The bones unknit and clattered to the asphalt in a heap. Almost immediately, they began to move, reassembling themselves. The second skeleton clattered his teeth at Percy and tried to fire, but Percy knocked his gun into the snow.  
Just then, one of the other skeletons pointed its gun at the son of Poseidon and fired.  
"Percy!" Thalia screamed at him, as a bullet made impact.  
He was knock to the ground, ready to blink of the pain. But there was none.  
He wasn't dead. The impact of the bullets had been dull, like a push, but they hadn't hurt him.  
They hadn't touched the jacket, either.  
He had been shot in the chest, but he was fine.  
His eyes widened.  
The curse of Achilles...  
Meanwhile, Thalia charged the second skeleton. Zoe and Bianca started firing arrows at the third and fourth, covering Annabeth, as she rushed towards Percy's fallen form.  
There was a crashing sound in the forest to their left, that sounded strangely similar to a bulldozer.  
Annabeth helped Percy to his feet, but then both of them had to duck, as a police baton was swung in their direction. The skeleton he'd cut in half earlier, was already fully re-formed, coming after them.  
There was no way to stop them.  
Zoe and Bianca fired at their heads point-blank, but the arrows just whistled straight through their empty skulls. One lunged at Bianca, but she whipped out her hunting knife and stabbed the warrior in the chest.  
The whole skeleton erupted into flames, leaving a little pile of ashes and a police badge.  
"How did you do that?" Zoe asked.  
"I don't know," Bianca said nervously. "Lucky stab?"  
"Well, do it again!"  
Bianca tried, but the remaining three skeletons were wary of her now. They pressed the demigods back, keeping them at baton's length.  
"Plan?" Percy said as they retreated.  
Nobody answered. The trees behind the skeletons were shivering. Branches were cracking.  
"A gift," Percy muttered. He remembered the boar. Really, it was a blessing in disguise.  
And then, with a mighty roar, the largest pig he'd ever seen came crashing into the road.  
Again.  
It was a wild boar, thirty feet high, with a snotty pink snout and tusks the size of canoes. Its back bristled with brown hair, and its eyes were wild and angry.  
"REEEEEEEEET!" It squealed, and raked the three skeletons aside with its tusks. The force was so great, the Sparti went flying, over the trees and into the side of the mountain, where they smashed to pieces, thigh bones and arm bones twirling everywhere.  
Then the pig turned on them.  
Thalia raised her spear, but Percy yelled, "Don't kill it.'"  
The boar grunted and pawed the ground, ready to charge.  
"That's the Erymanthian Boar," Zoe said, trying to stay calm. "I don't think we can kill it."  
"It's a gift," Percy said, mimicking Grover's words. "A blessing from the Wild!"  
The boar said "REEEEEEET!" and swung its tusk. Zoe and Bianca dived out of the way. Percy had to push Annabeth so she wouldn't get launched into the mountain on the Boar Tusk Express.  
"Yeah, I feel blessed!" Thalia said. "Scatter!"  
We ran in different directions, and for a moment the boar was confused.  
"It wants to kill us!" Thalia said.  
"Of course," Zoe said. "It's wild!"  
"So how is that a blessing?" Bianca asked.  
It seemed a fair question to Percy, but the pig was offended and charged her. She was faster than I'd realized. She rolled out of the way of its hooves and came up behind the beast.  
It lashed out with its tusks and pulverized the WELCOME TO CLOUDCROFT sign.  
Percy racked his brain, trying to remember the myth of the boar.  
He was sure Hercules had fought this thing once, but he couldn't remember how he'd beaten it. He had a vague memory of the boar plowing down several Greek cities before Hercules managed to subdue it.  
"Keep moving!" Zoe yelled. She and Bianca ran in opposite directions. Annabeth danced around the boar, slicing and stabbing with her knife while the boar snorted and tried to gouge her.  
But Thalia and Percy won the prize for bad luck. When the boar turned on them, Thalia made the mistake of raising Aegis in defense. The sight of Medusa's head made the boar squeal in outrage.  
Maybe it looked too much like one of his relatives.  
Whatever the case, the boar charged them.  
They only managed to keep ahead of it because they ran uphill, and they could dodge in and out of trees while the boar had to plow through them.  
On the other side of the hill, Percy found an old stretch of train tracks, half buried in the snow.  
"This way.'" Percy grabbed Thalia's arm and they ran along the rails while the boar roared behind us, slipping and sliding as it tried to navigate the steep hillside. Its hooves just were not made for this, thank the gods.  
Ahead of them, he saw a covered tunnel. Past that, an old trestle bridge spanning a gorge. He had a crazy idea. Again.  
"Follow me!"  
Thalia slowed down—He knew of her acrophobia. But he had no choice—he pulled her along and she reluctantly followed. Behind them, a ten-ton pig tank was knocking down pine trees and crushing boulders under its hooves as it chased them.  
Thalia and Percy ran into the tunnel and came out on the other side.  
"No!" Thalia screamed.  
She'd turned as white as ice. They were at the edge of the bridge. Below, the mountain dropped away into a snow-filled gorge about seventy feet below.  
The boar was right behind them.  
"Come on!" Percy said. "It'll hold our weight, probably."  
"I can't!" Thalia yelled. Her eyes were wild with fear.  
The boar smashed into the covered tunnel, tearing through at full speed.  
"Now!" he yelled at Thalia.  
She looked down and swallowed. Percy swore she was turning green.  
The boar was charging through the tunnel, straight toward them. Looks like its plan B, again.  
He tackled Thalia and sent them both sideways off the edge of the bridge, into the side of the mountain. They slid on Aegis like a snow-board, over rocks and mud and snow, racing downhill. The boar was less fortunate; it couldn't turn that fast, so all ten tons of the monster charged out onto the tiny trestle, which buckled under its weight. The boar free-fell into the gorge with a mighty squeal and landed in a snowdrift with a huge POOOOOF!  
Thalia and Percy skidded to a stop. They were both breathing hard.  
Thalia was cut up and bleeding.  
Percy was unscathed  
Thalia had pine needles in her hair. Next to them, the wild boar was squealing and struggling.  
All Percy could see was the bristly tip of its back. It was wedged completely in the snow like Styrofoam packing. It didn't seem to be hurt, but it wasn't going anywhere, either.  
Percy looked at Thalia. "You're afraid of heights."

________________________________________  
Chapter 21: Night  
________________________________________  
They rode until sunset, which was about as much as Zoe's backside could take.  
Riding the boar had been about as comfortable as riding a giant steel brush over a bed of gravel all day.  
Not that Zoe would know what that would feel like, but she imagined that if she would ever experience it, this was how it would feel like.  
She had no idea how much ground they had covered, but the mountains had faded into the distance and were replaced by miles of flat, dry steppe. Then, the grass and scrub brush got sparser until they were galloping (do boars gallop?) across desert.  
As night fell, the boar came to a stop at a creek bed and snorted. He started drinking the muddy water, then ripped a saguaro cactus out of the ground and chewed it, needles and all.  
"This is as far as he'll go." Annabeth spoke up, "We need to get off while we can."  
Apparently, no one needed convincing, and it took the group approximately five seconds to get off the boar and waddle away with their sore behinds.  
After its third saguaro and another drink of muddy water, the boar squealed and belched, then whirled around and galloped back toward the east.  
"It likes the mountains better," Percy guessed.  
"I can't blame it," Thalia said. "Look."  
Ahead of them was a two-lane road half covered with sand. On the other side of the road was a cluster of buildings too small to be a town: a boarded-up house, a taco shop, and a white stucco post office with a sign that said GILA CLAW, ARIZONA hanging crooked above the door. Beyond that was a range of hills…  
No...  
Not hills...  
The countryside was way too flat for that.  
The hills were enormous mounds of old cars, appliances, and other scrap metal. It was a junkyard that seemed to go on forever.  
Zoe did not have fond memories of the place.  
"Whoa," Annabeth muttered.  
"Something tells me we're not going to find a car rental here," Thalia said. Turning to Percy she said, "I don't suppose you got another wild boar up your sleeve?"  
The demigod rolled his eyes.  
________________________________________  
They had decided to camp for the night and tackle the junkyard in the morning.  
Zoe and Bianca produced five sleeping bags and foam mattresses out of their backpacks. Of course, their bags were enchanted, which allowed flawless and efficient packing.  
Their bows and quivers were also magic. When the Hunters needed them, they just appeared slung over their backs. And when they didn't, they were gone.  
The night got chilly fast, so Percy collected old boards from the ruined house, and Thalia zapped them with an electric shock to start a campfire. Pretty soon they were about as comfy as one could get in a rundown ghost town in the middle of nowhere.  
"The stars are out," Zoe smiled.  
There were millions of them, with no city lights to turn the sky orange.  
"Amazing," Bianca said. "I've never actually seen the Milky Way."  
"This is nothing," Zoe said. "In the old days, there were more. Whole constellations have disappeared because of human light pollution."  
"You talk like you're not human," Annabeth pointed out.  
Zoe raised an eyebrow. "I am a Hunter. I care what happens to the wild places of the world. Can the same be said for thee?"  
"For you," Thalia corrected. "Not thee"  
"But you use you for the beginning of a sentence."  
"And for the end," Thalia said. "No thou. No thee. Just you"  
Zoe threw up her hands in exasperation. "I hate this language. It changes too often!"  
Percy chuckled at her expense. The conversation had gone down exactly as last time.  
"What I want to know," Thalia said, looking at Bianca, "is how you destroyed one of the zombies. There are a lot more out there somewhere. We need to figure out how to fight them."  
Bianca shook her head. "I don't know. I just stabbed it and it went up in flames.  
"Maybe there's something special about your knife," Percy bluffed.  
He had no way to explain how he knew Bianca's father was Hades...  
"It is the same as mine," Zoe said. "Celestial bronze, yes. But mine did not affect the warriors that way."  
"Maybe you have to hit the skeleton in a certain spot," he argued.  
Bianca looked uncomfortable with everybody paying attention to her.  
"Never mind," Zoe told her. "We will find the answer. In the meantime, we should plan our next move. When we get through this junkyard, we must continue west. If we can find a road, we may hitchhike to the nearest city."  
Percy perked up at that.  
"Bianca. I need to talk to you about something. Could you please follow me?" Percy got up, a motioned her to follow him.  
Bianca nodded and complied.  
The rest of the group fell into a comfortable silence around the flames of their campfire.  
Zoe could make out certain aspects of the conversation between Percy and Bianca.  
She could only make out a few words from her distance from them.  
"–Las Vegas"  
"How did–"  
"A couple years– … –makes time speed up."  
"–not possible!"  
"–got you out."  
"Yes."  
"–look like– … –say?"  
"–don't remember. Please– … –about it."  
Zoe sat forward, her eyebrows knit with concern. She knew where the conversation was heading. Percy was confronting Bianca about her past.  
"–Washington– … –changed– … –subway."  
"Yes, but–"  
"–president–"  
"Don't be silly,"  
She mentioned the name of the current President.  
"–president before that?"  
"Roosevelt."  
"Theodore or Franklin?"  
"Franklin," Bianca said. "F.D.R."  
Zoe leaned in further.  
"Bianca," Percy said. "F.D.R. was not the last president. That was about seventy years ago."  
"That's impossible," Bianca said. "I… I'm not that old."  
She stared at her hands as if to make sure they weren't wrinkled.  
It didn't seem as though the others were paying attention to the conversation between Percy and Bianca.  
Annabeth was in a deep conversation with Thalia, their hushed whispers inaudible to Zoe.  
As Percy and Bianca began to make their way back to the group, Zoe could hear the last of the boy's words, "it's okay, Bianca. The important thing is you and Nico are safe. You made it out."  
Before Bianca could reply to the statement, the group was hit with a blazing light from down the road.  
Headlights of a car appeared out of nowhere. Despite her hatred of the god, Zoe was half hoping it was Apollo, come to give them a ride again, but the engine was way too silent for the sun chariot. Besides, it was nighttime.  
The group quickly grabbed their sleeping bags and got out of the way as a deathly white limousine slid to a stop in front of them.  
The back door of the limo opened right next to Percy. Before he could step away, the point of a sword touched his throat.  
Zoe and Bianca drew their bows. As the owner of the sword got out of the car, Percy was forced to move back slowly to avoid the pressure of the blade under his chin.  
The man with the sword smiled cruelly. "Not so fast now, are you, punk?"  
He was a big man with a crew cut, a black leather biker's jacket, black jeans, a white muscle shirt, and combat boots. Wraparound shades hid his eyes, but Zoe knew what was behind those glasses—hollow sockets filled with flames.  
"Ares," Percy growled.  
The war god glanced at Zoe's friends with a smug smile.  
"At ease, people."  
He snapped his fingers, and their weapons fell to the ground.  
"This is a friendly meeting." He dug the point of his blade a little farther under Percy's chin.  
Ares turned back towards the son of Poseidon. "Of course, I'd like to take your head for a trophy, but someone wants to see you. And I never behead my enemies in front of a lady."  
"What lady?" Thalia asked.  
Ares looked over at her.  
"Well, well. I heard you were back."  
He lowered his sword, and shoved Percy away.  
"Thalia, daughter of Zeus," Ares mused. "You're not hanging out with very good company."  
"What's your business, Ares?" she said. "Who's in the car?"  
Ares smiled, enjoying the attention. "Oh, I doubt she wants to meet the rest of you. Particularly not them." He jutted his chin toward Zoe and Bianca. "Why don't you all go get some tacos while you wait? It'll only take Percy a few minutes."  
"We will not leave him alone with thee, Lord Ares," Zoe said.  
"Then stay, Huntress. Aphrodite would like to speak with thee too."  
The mocking tone in his voice was more than obvious.  
"Besides," Thalia managed, "the taco place is closed."  
Ares snapped his fingers again. The lights inside the taqueria suddenly blazed to life. The boards flew off the door and the CLOSED sign flipped to OPEN.  
"You were saying, sparky?"  
"Go on," Percy told his friends. "We'll handle this."  
They reluctantly headed over to the taco restaurant. Ares regarded Percy and Zoe with loathing, before opening the limousine door like a chauffeur.  
"Get inside, punks," he said. "And mind your manners. She's not as forgiving of rudeness as I am."  
In the limo, awaited the most beautiful women, Zoe had ever seen.  
She was wearing a red satin dress and her hair was curled in a cascade of ringlets.  
Her face was flawless: perfect makeup, dazzling eyes, and a smile that would've lit up the dark side of the moon.  
Zoe had heard much of the beauty of the goddess of love.  
"Ah, there you are, Percy," the goddess said. "I am Aphrodite."  
Percy slipped into the seat across from her and said something like, "Um uh gah."  
She smiled. "Aren't you sweet? Hold this, please."  
She handed him a polished mirror the size of a dinner plate and had Percy hold it up for her. She leaned forward and dabbed at her lipstick, though Zoe couldn't see anything wrong with it.  
"And you too, Zoe dear."  
Nodding slightly, Zoe took a seat beside Percy, subconsciously sitting closer to him than she needed to.  
Something that didn't go unnoticed by Aphrodite.

________________________________________  
Chapter 22: Junk  
________________________________________  
Ares smiled, enjoying the attention. "Oh, I doubt she wants to meet the rest of you. Particularly not them." He jutted his chin toward Zoe and Bianca. "Why don't you all go get some tacos while you wait? It'll only take Percy a few minutes."  
"We will not leave him alone with thee, Lord Ares," Zoe said.  
"Then stay, Huntress. Aphrodite would like to speak with thee too."  
The mocking tone in his voice was more than obvious.  
"Besides," Thalia managed, "the taco place is closed."  
Ares snapped his fingers again.  
The lights inside the taqueria suddenly blazed to life. The boards flew off the door and the CLOSED sign flipped to OPEN.  
"You were saying, Sparky?"  
"Go on," Percy told his friends. "We'll handle this."  
Nodding reluctantly, the three girls made their way into the newly reopened taco shop.  
"Why do you think Ares needed Zoe and Percy?"  
The question came from Thalia.  
"It probably wasn't Ares that requested the audience," Annabeth began. "It could have been Aphrodite."  
Thalia nodded in agreement, "I hope she isn't up to something."  
"What would the goddess of love need, with one of Lady Artemis' Hunters? Especially, Zoe. She's the lieutenant."  
That was Bianca, voicing her concerns.  
Thalia shrugged, walking forward to the counter to place an order.  
"Might as well eat something while we wait..."  
Annabeth followed, looking at the menu.  
Bianca chose not to. For some reason, she had a feeling that something was about to go wrong.  
Try as she might, she couldn't shake that feeling away.  
Suddenly she felt her vision blur and the world did a three-sixty, spinning in a cloud of red dust.  
She fell to the ground.  
________________________________________  
When she stood up again, she was no longer in the taco shop. The whole town of Gila Claw was gone. She and her friends were standing in the middle of the junkyard, mountains of scrap metal stretched out in every direction.  
Turning to Percy and Zoe, Bianca asked, "What did Ares want from you?"  
Percy blinked his eyes to get rid of the grogginess, "Oh. Ares wasn't the one who was interested in us. It was Aphrodite."  
Zoe spoke up, "She said to be careful in her husband's junkyard. Said not to pick anything up."  
"Anything else? I don't think she would make a special trip just to tell you two that, Thalia said.  
"Well Aphrodite mentioned she wanted to fix Zoe's English"  
Bianca stared at Percy like he had grown a second head.  
"It is true," Zoe began, "Although I do not see the practical use in changing my speaking patterns, I do suppose it could be an advantage."  
"Are you sure she did anything?" Thalia rolled her eyes, "That sounded pretty old English to me."  
Zoe rolled her eyes back at the daughter of Zeus. "How about go f-word yourself?"  
Thalia diverted her eyes towards Percy, "Did she just say 'f-word? '"  
Percy burst out laughing outright, whereas Bianca and Annabeth tried to hold theirs in.  
"We need to make progress. Which direction should we go?" Annabeth adjusted her hair, pushing a bang behind her ear.  
"We need to head west," Zoe said.  
"That way," Percy interrupted. He pointed west. "Ursa Major is to the north, so that is west."  
Annabeth gave an impressed look, while Percy gave Zoe a cheeky glance. The huntress glared back at the boy.  
Bianca narrowed her eyes at the interaction between the two. Almost like childhood friends, although, as much as she knew, the pair had met mere days ago.  
________________________________________  
They'd reached the crest of a junk mountain.  
Piles of metal objects glinted in the moonlight: broken heads of bronze horses, metal legs from human statues, smashed chariots, tons of shields and swords and other weapons, along with more modern stuff, like cars that gleamed gold and silver, refrigerators, washing machines, and computer monitors.  
"Whoa," Bianca said. "That stuff… some of it looks like real gold."  
"It is," Thalia said grimly. "Like Zoe said, don't touch anything. This is the junkyard of the gods."  
"Look!" Bianca said. She raced down the hill, tripping over bronze coils and golden plates. She picked up a bow that glowed silver in moonlight. "A Hunter's bow!"  
She yelped in surprise as the bow began to shrink, and became a hair clip shaped like a crescent moon. "It's just like Percy's sword!"  
Zoe's face became grim, but Bianca was able to make out a slight amount of panic. "Leave it, Bianca."  
"But—"  
"It is here for a reason. Anything thrown away in this junkyard must stay in this yard. It is defective. Or cursed."  
Bianca reluctantly set the hair clip down.  
"I don't like this place," Thalia said. She gripped the shaft of her spear.  
"You think we're going to get attacked by killer refrigerators?" Percy joked, but his expression almost looked pained. Almost like he knew something was about to go wrong.  
Thalia gave him a hard look. "Zoe is right, Percy. Things get thrown away here for a reason. Now come on, let's get across the yard."  
Percy faked a gasp, "You agreed with Zoe!"  
Thalia ignored him, while Annabeth giggled at the comment.  
They started picking their way through the hills and valleys of junk. The stuff seemed to go on forever, and if it hadn't been for Ursa Major, they would've gotten lost. All the hills pretty much looked the same.  
As they were climbing down the one of the last hills, Bianca almost tripped. After steadying herself, she spied the perpetrator.  
To her surprise, it was a figurine from Mythomagic.  
Her mind raced, and realized it was the exact one that Nico had been trying to find to complete his collect. The last piece in his puzzle.  
She hesitantly made a grab for it, expecting something horrendous to happen.  
Finally, when she scrounged out enough bravery, she pulled the figurine out from its spot and slid it into her pocket.  
She paused, waiting.  
Nothing.  
Maybe not everything in here was cursed?  
She smiled to herself in disbelief, until she realized the others had left her behind.  
"Wait up!" she shouted before scrambling down the hillside.  
Finally, they saw the edge of the junkyard about half a mile ahead of them, the lights of a highway stretching through the desert. But between them and the road…  
"What is that?" Bianca gasped.  
Ahead of them was a hill much bigger and longer than the others. It was like a metal mesa, the length of a football field and as tall as goalposts. At one end of the mesa was a row of ten thick metal columns, wedged tightly together.  
Bianca frowned. "They look like—"  
"Toes," Annabeth finished.  
Bianca nodded. "Really, really large toes."  
Zoe and Percy exchanged nervous looks.  
"Let's go around," Thalia said. "Far around."  
"I agree," Percy spoke up far too soon to be a response. Almost like he knew what Thalia's words would be.  
After several minutes of walking, we finally stepped onto the highway, an abandoned but well-lit stretch of black asphalt.  
"We made it out," Zoe said, looking apprehensive still. "Thank the gods."  
But apparently the gods didn't want to be thanked. At that moment, Bianca heard a sound like a thousand trash compactors crushing metal.  
She whirled around. Behind them, the scrap mountain was boiling, rising up. The ten toes tilted over, and she realized why they looked like toes. They were toes. The thing that rose up from the metal was a bronze giant in full Greek battle armor. He was impossibly tall—a skyscraper with legs and arms. He gleamed wickedly in the moonlight.  
He looked down at us, and his face was deformed. The left side was partially melted off. His joints creaked with rust, and across his armored chest, written in thick dust by some giant finger, were the words WASH ME.  
"Talos!" Zoe gasped.  
"Who—who's Talos?" Bianca stuttered.  
"One of Hephaestus's creations," Thalia said. "But that can't be the original. It's too small. A prototype, maybe. A defective model.  
The metal giant didn't seem to like the word defective.  
He moved one hand to his sword belt and drew his weapon. The sound of it coming out of its sheath was horrible, metal screeching against metal. The blade was a hundred feet long, easy. It looked rusty and dull, but Bianca figured that that wouldn't mattered. Getting hit with that thing would be like getting hit with a battleship.  
"Someone took something," Zoe said. "Who took something?"  
She stared accusingly at Percy.  
Bianca gulped. She was the reason Talos was coming alive.  
She should have left that stupid statue of Hades on the ground.  
Percy shook his head. "I'm a lot of things, but I'm not a thief."  
Bianca didn't say anything. Then, the giant defective Talos took one step toward them, closing half the distance and making the ground shake.  
"Run!" Thalia yelped.  
Great advice, except that it was hopeless. At a leisurely stroll, this thing could outdistance them easily.  
They split up, the way they'd done with the Nemean Lion. Thalia drew her shield and held it up as she ran down the highway. The giant swung his sword and took out a row of power lines, which exploded in sparks and scattered across Thalia's path.  
Zoe's arrows whistled toward the creature's face but shattered harmlessly against the metal.  
Bianca and Percy ended up next to each other, hiding behind a broken chariot.  
"You took something," he said. His voice held no doubt. "That bow?"  
"No!" she said, but her voice was quivering.  
"Give it back!" He said. "Throw it down!"  
"I… I didn't take the bow! Besides, it's too late."  
"What did you take?"  
Before she could answer, she heard a massive creaking noise, and a shadow blotted out the sky.  
"Move!" Percy tore down the hill, Bianca right behind him, as the giant's foot smashed a crater in the ground where they'd been hiding.  
"Hey Talos!"  
Thalia attempted distracting the giant robot by sending spirals of pale blue electricity to its neck.  
Talos whirled around, creaking and sparking. Thalia had bought them a few seconds.  
"Come on!" He told Bianca. But she stayed frozen. From her pocket, she brought out a small metal figurine, a statue of a god.  
"It… it was for Nico. It was the only statue he didn't have."  
"How can you think of Mythomagic at a time like this?" he all but shouted.  
Tears started to sprout from her eyes.  
"Throw it down," he told her. "Maybe the giant will leave us alone."  
She dropped it reluctantly, but nothing happened.  
The giant kept coming after Annabeth, who had grabbed its attention somehow. It stabbed its sword into a junk hill, missing her by a few feet, but scrap metal made an avalanche over her, and then Bianca couldn't see her anymore.  
"No!" Thalia yelled. She pointed her spear, and a blue arc of lightning shot out, hitting the monster in his rusty knee, which buckled. The giant collapsed, but immediately started to rise again. It was hard to tell if it could feel anything. There weren't any emotions in its half-melted face, but Bianca got the sense that it was about as ticked off as a twenty-story-tall metal warrior could be.  
He raised his foot to stomp and Bianca saw that his sole was treaded like the bottom of a sneaker. There was a hole in his heel, like a large manhole, and there were red words painted around it, which she deciphered only after the foot came down: FOR MAINTENANCE ONLY.  
"Crazy-idea time," Bianca said, her eyes narrowing in determination.  
Percy looked at her nervously. "Anything?"  
She told him about the maintenance hatch. "There may be a way to control the thing. Switches or something. I'm going to get inside."  
"How? You'll have to stand under its foot! You'll be crushed"  
"Distract it," she said. "I'll just have to time it right."  
Percy's jaw tightened. "No. I'll go."  
"You can't. You're needed in the future! You'll die."  
"No, I won't! You're new at this. You'll die!"  
"It's my fault the monster came after us," she said. "It's my responsibility. Here." She picked up the little god statue and pressed it into his hand. "If anything happens, give that to Nico. Tell him… tell him I'm sorry."  
Percy's eyes narrowed.  
"Tell him yourself."  
Before Bianca knew what was happening, Percy lashed out.  
All she could do was feel a sharp pain on her neck, before Bianca's vision faded into black.  
________________________________________  
Chapter 23: Dead  
________________________________________  
Bianca's vision was bleary.  
Her head throbbed.  
Where was she?  
Blinking confusedly, she pushed herself up from the sand and looked around.  
She was in a junkyard.  
Her eyes widened in alarm when she remembered what had happened.  
"Percy!"  
Her voice was hoarse. Nobody heard her.  
She could see Annabeth from the corner of her vision.  
Annabeth was kneeled on the ground, crying.  
Bianca's eyes darted around. Thalia was yelling in rage, impaling her sword into various points of the giant's smashed face.  
Zoe stared at the remains of the prototype, in deep silence.  
"We can keep searching," Annabeth yelled frantically, tears streaming down her face. "It's light now. We'll find him."  
"No, we won't," Zoe said miserably. "It happened just as it was supposed to."  
"What are you talking about?" She demanded.  
She looked up at her with big watery eyes. "The prophecy. One shall be lost in the land without rain."  
Why hadn't she seen it? Why did she let him go instead of herself?  
Here they were in the desert, and Percy Jackson was gone.  
"No! He can't be gone! Not like this!"  
The shock far too great for her to handle.  
Before anymore could be said, Annabeth's wailing began to fade.  
Bianca's eyes began to lose focus, as she became unconscious once again.  
________________________________________  
When Bianca's eyes snapped open, she was surprised to find herself in the back of a tow truck.  
Thalia was driving, with Annabeth at shotgun. Tears stained Annabeth's eyes as she stared blankly into the deserted distance.  
Zoe was fast asleep beside her. Her expression was troubled.  
"Percy?" her voice was hoarse. Her mind still riddled with shock.  
Thalia looked at her from the rear-view mirror with a solemn expression. She shook her head lightly implying all she needed to know.  
Percy was dead.  
He had sacrificed himself to save them.  
Thalia navigated them through the desert, under clear blue skies, the sand so bright it hurt to look at.  
The air was cool and dry, but the nice weather just seemed like an insult after losing Percy.  
Bianca stared at her palms, tears welling up in her eyes.  
Her hand closed around the little figurine that had cost them, his life.  
It was all her fault...  
It was her fault that Percy was dead.  
Her fault.  
She clenched her fist around the statue of Hades. A soft black aura began to flow off her as her anger grew.  
It was her fault...  
It was all her fault!  
With a snap, the figurine cracked.  
Her fault...  
The aura grew thicker.  
It was all her fault!  
Zoe began to stir. Annabeth's attention turned towards Bianca.  
Percy would still be alive if it wasn't for the stupid statue in her hands...  
Her grip tightened around the figure of Hades.  
Subconsciously, she began choking the figurine.  
He was dead because of her…  
He died because of her…  
He died instead of her…  
Her eyes began to flicker between her regular black to blood red.  
He died...  
He was dead.  
The aura thickened.  
The temperature inside the vehicle dropped twenty degrees.  
Quickly taking notice from the back of the car, Thalia swerved to the side of the road.  
Bianca's eyes flickered more violently.  
Because of her...  
Her grip on the figurine resembled a vice.  
It was all her fault!  
Bianca's eyes had turned a pure blood red.  
The aura around her was suffocating. Although she wasn't looking for it, she sensed all eyes on her.  
"Bianca?" Zoe's voice was careful.  
The statue of Hades burst into pitch black flames.  
The aura began to die down.  
Her eyes began to flicker yet again.  
Bianca noticed a soft glow above her head.  
The Helm of Darkness...  
"Daughter of Hades..."  
Annabeth's voice snapped Bianca out of her trance like state.  
She blinked.  
Her vision began to blur.  
She could see red.  
"Her eyes are bleeding!"  
Thalia's voice was urgent, panicking.  
"Bianca!"  
Zoe's voice was the last she heard before she fell unconscious for the third time that day.  
________________________________________  
When Bianca regained consciousness for the third time, she was held piggyback on Thalia's shoulders.  
The older girl had stopped moving once she felt Bianca stir.  
Bianca blinked, clearing her vision.  
She remembered what had happened in perfect detail.  
She. She was had been claimed.  
Zoe had explained to her what that was, the first time they had met.  
Her godly parent had claimed her.  
She was a daughter of Hades.  
She had no idea what to make of that information.  
On one hand, Hades was a great god.  
She personally had no quarrel over death.  
But would that opinion be biased considering her parentage?  
Her eyes widened at a new possibility.  
She was eligible for the great prophecy.  
Hades.  
Percy had died because of a statue of Hades.  
A statue of her father...  
Bianca groaned as Thalia let her down.  
"Are you alright Bianca?"  
Zoe's concerned voice broke Bianca from her thoughts.  
She nodded in response, accepting the bottle of water Annabeth was handing her.  
"What happened back there?" Thalia asked her.  
Bianca shrugged her shoulders, "I don't know..."  
The daughter of Zeus decided to not push for more details.  
It was then, that Bianca took in her surroundings.  
A dam the size of a football stadium stood in their path.  
"Hoover Dam," Thalia said.  
"Wow. It's huge," Bianca said.  
They stood at the river's edge, looking up at a curve of concrete that loomed between the cliffs. People were walking along the top of the dam. They were so tiny they looked like fleas.  
"Seven hundred feet tall," Annabeth awed in amazement of the sight. "Built in the 1930s."  
Thalia grumbled an unpleasant comment about children of Athena.  
"Five million cubic acres of water," Annabeth continued with wide eyes, completely oblivious. "At the time, it was the largest construction project in the United States."  
She took a deep breath, contemplating her next words.  
"If only Percy were here with us..."  
A hush fell over the group. The death of the young half-blood weighed heavily on their backs.  
"That's where the road is." Zoe pointed to a huge parking garage next to the top of the dam after the moment of silence.  
They had to walk for almost an hour before they found a path that led up to the road. It came up on the east side of the river. Then they straggled back toward the dam. It was cold and windy near top.  
On one side, a big lake spread out, ringed by barren desert mountains. On the other side, the dam dropped away like the world's most dangerous skateboard ramp, down to the river seven hundred feet below, and water that churned from the dam's vents.  
"There's a snack bar in the visitor center," Thalia said suddenly.  
Bianca felt her stomach rumble.  
"You've been here before?" She asked.  
"Once. To see the guardians." She pointed to the far end of the dam. Carved into the side of the cliff was a little plaza with two big bronze statues. They looked kind of like Oscar statues with wings.  
"They were dedicated to Zeus when the dam was built," Thalia said. "A gift from Athena."  
Tourists were clustered all around them. They seemed to be looking at the statues' feet.  
"What are they doing?" Bianca asked.  
"Rubbing the toes," Thalia said. "They think it's good luck."  
"Why?"  
She shook her head. "Mortals get crazy ideas. They don't know the statues are sacred to Zeus, but they know there's something special about them."  
"When you were here last, did they talk to you or anything?"  
Thalia's expression darkened. Bianca could tell that she'd come here before hoping for exactly that—some kind of sign from her dad. Some connection.  
Something Bianca could empathize with.  
"No. They don't do anything. They're just big metal statues."  
Bianca's breath hitched as she thought about the last metal statue that they had seen.  
The unpleasant memories compelled her not the bring it up.  
"Let us find the dam snack bar," Zoe said. "We should eat while we can."  
Annabeth cracked a smile. "The dam snack bar?"  
Zoe blinked. "Yes. What is funny?"  
"Nothing," the daughter of Athena said, trying to keep a straight face. "I could use some dam French fries."  
Even Thalia smiled at that. "And I need to use the dam restroom."  
Maybe it was the fact that they were so tired and strung out emotionally, but Bianca started cracking up. Thalia and Annabeth joined in, while Zoe just looked at them strangely.  
"I still do not understand. Even with this idiotic blessing Aphrodite had given to me, I do not understand," Zoe said.  
"I want to use the dam water fountain," Bianca said.  
"And…" Thalia tried to catch her breath. "I want to buy a dam T-shirt."  
Bianca busted up, she probably would've kept laughing all day.  
But they needed to continue on with their mission. Their quest.  
They needed to save Athena.  
They needed to save her even though Percy Jackson was Dead...

________________________________________  
Chapter 24: Safe  
________________________________________  
"What did you want with my lieutenant?"  
Artemis's voice was filled with rage. Yet, she was curious about what Aphrodite could see in Zoe Nightshade, her sworn lieutenant. She had confronted the love goddess as soon as Aphrodite and Ares had returned to Olympus. Artemis really hoped that Aphrodite wasn't up to one of her old tricks... No one would want a repeat of happened with Troy.  
"Nothing Arty! Just gave her some proper English. That's it!"  
Aphrodite's silky voice was whiny, almost like she had been repeatedly answering Artemis...  
Which she had been doing, for the past thirty minutes.  
Honestly, Artemis' frustration was growing. Every question she threw out was dodged deftly, she didn't know what else she could say that would make the love goddess spill.  
Artemis glared at her for the thousandth time, "You'd better not try anything with Zoe!"  
Her voice was laced with venom. She knew of the huntress's fate. Percy told her that Zoe was meant to die at the hands of her father.  
Artemis was truly troubled by the news, regardless of whether Percy had promised to keep her safe or not.  
"I've told you this a million times! I can't create love! Zoe liking Percy was none of my doing!"  
Both Artemis' and Aphrodite's eyes widened at the statement. The love goddess probably hadn't meant for that to slip.  
Artemis froze.  
"What!"  
Aphrodite giggled, "Oops, that was meant to be a surprise."  
Artemis glared at her. She prayed that what the other goddess had said had merely been a joke.  
She wondered if it was possible for gods to pray.  
"Zoe likes Percy, Artemis, and I had nothing to do with it." Aphrodite said. Then the love goddess's voice turned serious. "He is a good guy."  
The woman cladded in pink disappeared in a puff of perfume, leaving the moon goddess frozen in her place on the gardens of Olympus.  
Artemis was frozen there, unable to comprehend or understand.  
She didn't know what to think.  
Zoe Nightshade was her most trusted hunter.  
She was her lieutenant.  
She was her daughter.  
She was her friend.  
Her best friend...  
If Aphrodite's words were true, then Artemis would have no other choice, but have to let Zoe go. In spite of how much it would pain her, Artemis would be forced to discharge Zoe from her hunters.  
Artemis half-heartedly hoped that Zoe would choose her family, over her heart.  
Artemis didn't know if she would want to let Zoe go. But she would have to, if Aphrodite's words were true.  
And there was no reason why the goddess of love would lie about such a thing.  
How hypocritical would it be if she allowed Zoe to stay with the hunters if she held romantic feelings for a boy.  
She had to admit, Percy was good for a man.  
Probably the only one close to being worthy of her huntress, but she was still unsure.  
What if the boy changed? As unlikely as it was, Athena always told her that even the slightest possibility was quite still, a possibility.  
Deep in thought, Artemis continued her stroll through the gardens of Olympus.  
So deep in thought, in fact, that she hadn't realized that she was simply walking in circles.  
Just as she passed the arena for the fifth time that day, Artemis was broken from her thoughts by a bright flash that temporarily blinded her.  
"Artemis!"  
Apollo's voice was frantic and panicked. His hair was more disheveled than usual and his striking blue eyes were fixed with worry.  
"It's Percy!"  
________________________________________  
Artemis and Apollo instantly flashed to the heart of Apollo's temple, known as the infirmary. When the bright light died down, Artemis was greeted with the still un-moving form of Percy Jackson.  
His sea green eyes were hidden behind the veil of his eyelids and his tan skin was coated in sweat and grime. But besides that, he seemed oddly unhurt.  
"He looks unharmed," she said, looking at the unconscious son of Poseidon.  
Artemis grew confused.  
Why was Percy unconscious?  
More importantly, why wasn't he with the rest of his quest mates. If what Percy had told her was indeed true, then her newest hunter would be in grave danger at any time.  
"That is what confuses me," Apollo began. "He should be dead."  
His voice was dead serious. Artemis ignored her subconscious ability to make puns.  
Artemis' eyes widened, "What happened? Why? How?"  
She began to grow worried, as was evident by her frantic questioning. Apollo apparently decided to ignore the fact that his sister was worried about a male, and instead had his work face on.  
"He was buried under seventeen tons of metal. He was found by Hephaestus in the ol' junkyard under the mangled remains of a Talos prototype."  
Artemis paled. She was wrong.  
Bianca wasn't soon to be in danger.  
The danger had passed her. Artemis no longer had to worry about Bianca's fate at the junkyard of the gods.  
She couldn't help but smile internally, but she dared not let her smile show in such a dire time.  
Percy had saved Bianca. The boy sacrificed himself to save the huntress.  
Artemis realized with a start, that the prophecy hadn't been defied.  
'One shall be lost in the land without rain'  
Percy Jackson was lost; at least, he was lost to the rest of his quest mates.  
But it seemed like the boy was very much still alive.  
The steady rise and fall of his chest proved that much to her.  
That puzzled her.  
How was the boy alive? If Bianca died in the exact same situation, how had the son of Poseidon survived under several tons of steel wreckage? Unharmed.  
"I can only think of one reason for him to be unscratched after all that ruble fell on him. Not to mention the electrocution from the insides of Talos."  
Apollo's voice still held that deathly seriousness. Artemis involuntarily wished her brother would stay this serious more often.  
Then she involuntarily gasped. What Apollo was alluding to was impossible.  
"You don't mean–"  
Apollo cut her off. His expression was grim.  
"The Curse of Achilles," he finished.  
The twin gods stared down at the still form of Percy Jackson, laying so peacefully in his sickbed.  
"It…" Artemis began. It wasn't possible. Then again, nothing about Percy was possible. Yet, there he was.  
"–isn't possible?" Apollo looked back. "Either way, he has it."  
________________________________________  
It had been a few hours later, when Percy began to stir.  
Artemis quickly stood from her seat. She had been waiting in the infirmary the entire time since she had found at about Percy's condition. She wanted a few words with the boy. Actually- much more than a few.  
Like how he managed to neglect telling her that he had the Curse of Achilles!  
Percy's eyes blinked open, "Wa-ter," he choked out.  
His throat was parched; Artemis could make out that much from his gravelly voice.  
"Here."  
Artemis handed the boy some nectar in a tall glass.  
The boy guzzled down the golden liquid until the burning in his throat forced him to stop.  
"Hope you don't mind telling me why you hadn't told me you had the Curse of Achilles."  
Artemis was glaring at the boy, who flinched at the gaze.  
"I – uh – kinda didn't know," he stammered. "Well... Until yesterday..."  
Softening her glare, she chose to believe the boy.  
"Is Bianca okay?" he asked, worriedly.  
Percy's expression was serious. He didn't say a word.  
Artemis nodded, "She is safe."  
Managing to sit up, Percy fished into his pocket and pulled out a golden drachma.  
"O Iris, show me Bianca di Angelo."  
He tossed the coin, and the message went through.  
It was rather convenient that one did not need a rainbow to IM on Olympus.  
Artemis stared through.  
She could see enough to tell the quest members were at Hoover dam.  
She murmured to herself how Athena would've seized the opportunity to guide the quest into some knowledge about the infamous project.  
Unfortunately, she had been captured.  
"Let us find the dam snack bar," Zoe said through the vision. "We should eat while we can."  
Annabeth cracked a smile. "The dam snack bar?"  
Zoe blinked. "Yes. What is funny?"  
"Nothing," the daughter of Athena said, trying to keep a straight face. "I could use some dam French fries."  
Even Thalia smiled at that. "And I need to use the dam restroom."  
Bianca started cracking up, and Thalia and Annabeth joined in, while Zoe just looked at them. "I still do not understand. Not even with this stupid blessing Aphrodite gave me."  
"I want to use the dam water fountain," Bianca said.  
"And…" Thalia tried to catch her breath. "I want to buy a dam T-shirt."  
Slicing through the Iris Message, Percy burst out in laughter.  
"That happened again!" He managed in-between his fits of laughter.  
Artemis couldn't help but smile at the boy's mirth.  
Maybe he wouldn't change...  
"So... How long am I going to be 'lost'?"  
Percy said after he regained his composure.  
Artemis began to think. If she wanted to, she could send Percy back on the quest immediately and be done with it.  
In the end, she decided against that.  
"You are going to be facing against Atlas, one of the most powerful Titans," Artemis said, waiting for his response.  
Percy nodded, not knowing where the conversation was going.  
"I'm going to be training you for the next few days."  
Percy's eyes widened in shock.  
"Wha-"  
Artemis cut him off, her eyes narrowed, "You will travel with my hunters and we will take you to San Francisco."  
Her voice gave no room for arguments.  
Artemis had to admit, she did have another motive in having the boy around her for the next few days.  
She needed to see for herself if the boy was indeed as good as she was told by the goddess of love.  
Percy nodded hesitantly, "Wouldn't the hunters kill me?"  
The goddess gave him a pointed look.  
"Oh... Right... Curse of Achilles..."  
He sheepishly rimmed the back of his head.  
"Rest for now. We leave in one hour."  
Artemis flashed out, leaving the boy to his own devices.  
Artemis trusted him to not look for an escape.  
________________________________________  
She found herself at the Information and Visitation Center for the Hoover Dam.  
There, she was completely surrounded by crowds of tourists.  
She found it strange of how many tourists were wandering the place. Artemis would've rather spend time hunting through the wilderness than visit a large nature destroying structure, any time.  
Mortals were strange. But she had had known this for millennia. She concentrated, molding herself into the form of a tour guide.  
As such, she would have more freedom into wandering any restricted areas if need be.  
You never could be too careful with quests... And mortals...  
She quickly found Zoe alone. Artemis inferred that while the other girls were in line for snack bar, Zoe had found the time useful for some alone time.  
Due to the ancient laws, Artemis couldn't directly ask to meet with Zoe personally, but she could attract her huntress' attention…  
Starting right behind Zoe, Artemis began a tour of the dam. A mob of tourists quickly swamped her, in ferocious excitement for new knowledge.  
Athena would've loved it here.  
Zoe ignored her, but Artemis continued waiting for a change in action.  
Then, finally there was. But she wasn't the cause.  
While Artemis was busy with a speech about the annual drainage capacity of the dam, a duo of Sparti appeared on the scene.  
Zoe quickly spied the two, and look for her friends. Apparently not having seen them in the split second she looked, she sprinted towards Artemis' tour group.  
Knowing her next move, Artemis began to finish her lecture, which she had completely made up on the spot.  
"Next part of the tour folks, my colleague will show you the dam's turbines and the rest of its inner workings," Artemis announced.  
Artemis led the group to the elevators, and was relieved when Zoe made in, in the neck of time.  
Artemis honestly wanted to burst out laughing. She had quietly observed as Zoe had tried her best to escape from the Sparti.  
Trying her best not to be too obvious, Artemis squirmed her way around until she had cornered Zoe in the elevator.  
"We'll be going down seven hundred feet," she announced to the group, as the elevator began its decent.  
"Does this go to the snack bar?" Zoe asked, not realizing to whom she was talking to.  
A few people behind her chuckled. Artemis looked at her expectantly.  
So, Aphrodite had been telling the truth. Zoe does speak modern English now.  
"To the turbines, young lady," the disguised goddess said. "Weren't you listening to my fascinating presentation upstairs?"  
"Oh, uh, sure. Is there another way out of the dam?"  
"It's a dead end," a tourist beside her said. "For heaven's sake. The only way out is the other elevator."  
The doors opened.  
"Go right ahead, folks," Artemis told the rest of the group. "Another ranger is waiting for you at the end of the corridor."  
"And young lady," Artemis took off her glasses, revealing her startlingly silver eyes, "Do not fret, the one you have lost can still be found."

________________________________________  
Chapter 25: Meet  
________________________________________  
Phoebe was not having the time of her life.  
First, Artemis was off doing who knows what on Olympus. Meanwhile Zoe Nightshade, her lieutenant, was off on some useless quest to save Athena.  
A quest that Phoebe was supposed to be a member of.  
To top it all off, she was left in charge of fourteen other girls ranging from prepubescent to hormonal teen. It had already been enough that she had missed the quest due to her being bed-ridden with hives.  
Which had somehow mysteriously faded once the quest had gone out of range.  
Phoebe would have groaned in frustration due to everything if she wasn't locked in an intense duel with one of her fellow hunters.  
The other girl was short. Around five-foot-two. She was fifteen and had long brunette hair that was tied in a ponytail.  
Her chocolate brown eyes were narrowed in frustration as she tried her best to push back the older girl.  
The girl was new, but a natural. Her skills with a hunting knife was nearly as honed as her voice.  
The girl had the voice of a siren.  
Phoebe feinted to the left, slicing at the girl's midsection. Her foe parried the strike and went for her own slice with her left hand. Growling in frustration, Phoebe grabbed the girl's hand and twisted, making her foe drop her knife.  
The girl pulled back and back-flipped away, kicking Phoebe in the chin in the process. The girl did have a flair for dramatics.  
Rubbing the assaulted area, Phoebe charged at the girl yet again, slashing and stabbing with all her force, when she finally managed to disarm the brunette, she panted out,  
"Yield."  
Snorting in dismay, the girl slowly nodded.  
Phoebe smirked, "You are pretty good…. For a mortal."  
The brunette took an elaborate bow, a smirk playing on her lips, "Rachel Berry serves to please."  
________________________________________  
It took the hunters exactly seventeen minutes and twenty-three seconds to pack up and be on their way.  
Artemis told them to have reached Keystone by seven in the evening, and they were only just crossing Denver. They needed to get a move on if they wanted to make the final seventy miles in the five hours they had remaining.  
Taking responsibility from Zoe to lead the hunters had been a refreshing change for Phoebe, but she still missed her sister in all but blood.  
Phoebe's thoughts drifted to the newest hunter that had joined their ranks not too long ago. In fact, come tomorrow, she would have been part of the hunters for two months exactly.  
She was certainly a curious case. The girl was born and raised in the small town of Lima, Ohio, and had been pretty much bullied all her life. A fact that was only multiplied tenfold with the fact that both her parents were both homosexual males.  
Everything had finally reached a breaking point when her fathers had been murdered by a religious zealot in cold blood.  
The hunters had found the girl on the outskirts of the city – bawling her eyes out – Phoebe had taken the initiative to invite the girl over for dinner. The two of them had gained something of a sisterhood since that day.  
The girl's hair had been disheveled and her brown eyes were red and puffy.  
The hunters, of course, had taken her in wholeheartedly and the girl was probably one of their best additions in ages.  
She was a natural with the hunting knives, and was half decent with a bow, despite having no prior experience.  
But not all about the girl was great, the girl was incredibly bossy and tended to storm out when things didn't go her way. A perfectionist in every sense of the word, she would stop at nothing, until her plan was successful. But this was to the great dismay to the less talented hunters who would whine and complain about her near militaristic commands.  
Phoebe knew that if the girl had more experience, she would make an amazing lieutenant. But she lacked experience, so Phoebe was assigned leader in the absence of Artemis and her second-in-command.  
Her personal pondering for the rest of the journey was in relatively nonexistent.  
________________________________________  
Phoebe sighed in relief. They had finally made it to Keystone, and luckily, ahead of schedule by twenty minutes.  
The hunters frantically began to set up camp, in hopes of being ready when their mistress arrived.  
And exactly twenty-two minutes and forty-four seconds later, Artemis appeared in a brilliant flash of light.  
But she was not alone... A lone boy stood beside the goddess.  
His raven black hair was wind-swept, and his bright sea green eyes shone with apprehension. His skin looked a little green, probably a side effect from the teleportation.  
If his facial features didn't give it away, then his eyes definitely did.  
The boy was Percy Jackson!  
"Alright my hunters, gather up," Artemis commanded.  
The fourteen girls huddled around their mistress and the boy.  
Well, they huddled around their mistress. Many looked in disdain and kept their distance from the son of Poseidon, which was understandable.  
Most were mumbling about having to be in the presence of a boy. They spat the word out with disgust.  
While Phoebe did strongly believe that she was, in fact, of the superior sex, her hate for the other gender had decreased considerably as the ages passed by.  
She knew that it was possible for a man to have a good heart, but honestly it was not worth looking through the filth to find.  
Percy Jackson on the other hand, was an enigma.  
The boy had achieved to make acquaintance with Zoe Nightshade out of all people. Zoe had never quite let go of her absolute loathing of the male species, and yet her and the son of Poseidon and hit it off like soul mates.  
Phoebe froze at that.  
There was absolutely no way that Zoe Nightshade would fall for a man, not even after her three thousand two hundred and forty-two years of her existence.  
Shaking her head away from such thoughts, she focused on what Artemis was saying.  
Something told her she wouldn't like where this was going.  
Artemis cleared her throat, almost as though she was preparing herself for the onslaught of questions that would befall her.  
"Before you say anything, let me finish what I have to say."  
Her first sentence made Phoebe nervous. She already expected bad news. More than that, she wondered why the boy was with them, and not with Zoe and the other quest mates.  
"Perseus is going to be staying with us for the foreseeable future."  
There goes any semblance of composure within the hunt.  
The woods are filled with protests and loud outcries. The only ones who seemed to not be perturbed by the information was Phoebe herself, and unsurprisingly Rachel Berry.  
It was unsurprising because the younger girl really had no problem with males. She did not join because she loathed males, she did not join because she was used or abused by males. She joined the hunters simply because she needed family and not having romantic interests in makes was but a small sacrifice for the girl.  
"Quiet."  
Artemis did not raise her voice, but I was still powerful enough to silence the hunters.  
"You are to treat Perseus Jackson as though he is one of you. You must treat him with utmost respect. If he causes any issues, you tell me first. There will be no argument whatsoever."  
The nervous hunters slowly mumbled defeat.  
"Phoebe," her head snapped up, meeting Artemis' gaze, "Show Percy around"  
Phoebe chose to ignore the use of the nickname. Of course, Artemis would choose her. She was one of the only ones who wouldn't kill him on sight.  
"Follow me Perseus."  
Nodding, the boy quietly followed her, not uttering a word in hopes of not angering the girl. Phoebe led him to the archery range, away from the other hunters.  
"How is Zoe?"  
The boy cracked a small smile, "Zoe is fine. She is more than capable of handling the rest of the questers without me."  
Phoebe nodded, "Speaking of that, why exactly aren't you with the others in the first place? And what of the others? Is Bianca safe?"  
"It's a long story, all of them are fine, and yes, Bianca is safe."  
Percy grinned at her, but his smile didn't reach his eyes like it usually did. Not that Phoebe paid any attention to his smile or anything...  
Okay, it was possible that she might have glanced at him one time when he was talking to Zoe. And she did notice that the smile he wore right now was not near as bright as when he was with Zoe.  
"Follow me, boy. I will show you to the tents." Nodding again, the boy followed the girl wordlessly.  
"The big one is Lady Artemis'"  
Phoebe pointed to the largest silver tent.  
"And these belong to us, the hunters."  
Phoebe gestured to thirteen other tents.  
"And that larger tent over there, " Phoebe pointed to a tent that was a bit larger than the one that belonged to Artemis, "is the infirmary"  
Percy nodded earnestly.  
Phoebe tossed him a small silver cube. The cube was about five inches long and was made out of a fabric-like material.  
"Toss it on the ground to set your tent. It would be in your best interests to set up away from the other hunters."  
Phoebe paused. "Unless, of course you would prefer to risk suffering the consequences."  
She chose not to elaborate.  
Shaking his head violently, Percy managed to stuttering out that he would take note of that chance.  
"And finally, we have the dining area. Soon, evening meal will start. Follow me and if you value your life, do not make eye contact with anyone. Especially the one with blue hair."  
Her command left no room for arguments, not that the boy had been planning on arguing in the first place.

________________________________________  
Chapter 26: Flight  
________________________________________  
Zoe was scanning the horizon for any approaching threats when she spied the two Sparti.  
This time, the skeletons wore matching gray camouflage outfits that resembled American desert camouflage. The two were wandering through the crowd of tourists, obviously seeking out the quest.  
Zoe turned around, looking to warn her friends, when she realized she did not know where the dam(n) snack bar was.  
Taking one look back at the two skeletons, who had spotted her, she made a split-second decision.  
Spying a tourist group crowding into a lift, Zoe speedily shoved her way into the space.  
Admittedly… she wasn't too fond of small spaces. But it would do.  
"We'll be going down seven hundred feet," the tour guide announced to the group, as the elevator began its decent.  
"Does this go to the snack bar?" Zoe asked, not realizing who she was talking to.  
A few people behind her chuckled. The tour guide scowled at her.  
"To the turbines, young lady," the woman said. "Weren't you listening to my fascinating presentation upstairs?"  
"Oh, uh, sure. Is there another way out of the dam?"  
"It's a dead end," a tourist beside her said. "For heaven's sake. The only way out is the other elevator."  
The doors opened.  
"Go right ahead, folks," the woman told the rest of the group. "Another ranger is waiting for you at the end of the corridor."  
"And young lady," the tour guide called. Zoe looked back. She'd taken off her glasses, revealing a familiar pair of startlingly silver eyes, "Do not fret, the one you have lost can still be found."  
The doors closed with the guide still inside leaving Zoe alone and confused.  
Before she could have time to realize who had spoken to her, a ding came from around the corner. The second elevator was opening, and she head the unmistakable sound of clattering skeleton teeth. Zoe ran after the tour group, in hopes of leading the predators away from the main part of the quest.  
Finally, she came out on a U-shape balcony that overlooked this huge warehouse area. About 15 meters below, enormous turbines were running. It was a big room, but Zoe quickly noted there wasn't another exit.  
Unless that is, she wanted to jump in towards the turbines. Which she did not.  
Another tour guide was talking over a microphone, lecturing about water supplies on Nevada. Zoe prayed that the quest was okay. They might've been already captured, or eating at the snack bar, completely unaware the Sparti had caught up with them. And idiotic of her, Zoe had trapped herself in a hole dozens of meters below the surface.  
She worked her way around the crowd, trying to not be too obvious about it. There was a hallway on the other side of the balcony – possibly some place to escape and make her way back to the surface. Zoe gripped her hunting knives, in anticipation for a brutal fight.  
By the time she had gotten to the opposite hallway, Zoe's instincts were working overtime.  
Then, right behind her was a sharp Chhh! Like the voice of a skeleton.  
With haste, Zoe pulled out her hunting knives and spun, slashing at the would-be monster.  
The maiden she'd just tried to slice in half yelped and dropped her Kleenex.  
"Oh my god!" she shouted. "Do you always try to kill people when they blow their nose?"  
The first thing that went through Zoe's head was that he knives hadn't hurt her. It had passed cleanly through the young maiden's body harmlessly. "You're mortal!"  
The girl looked at Zoe with disbelief. "What's that supposed to mean? Of course, I'm mortal! How'd you get those knives across security?"  
"I didn't – Wait. You can see my knives?"  
The girl rolled her eyes, which green like Percy's. Possibly a shade darker. Not that Zoe had been paying attention to what shade the son of Poseidon's eyes was... Much... That was beside the point. The maiden had frizzy reddish-brown hair and wore a big marron Harvard sweatshirt and a simple pair of jeans that were covered with marker stains and little holes, like she spent her free time poking it with a fork.  
"Well, it's either a knife or one of the largest toothpicks in the world," she said. "and why didn't it hurt me. I mean, not that I'm complaining. Who are you? And whoa, what is that you're wearing? Are those real diamonds on that tiara?  
She asked so many questions so fast, it was like she was barraging her with arrows. Zoe knew that the skeleton warriors were still chasing her, so she did not have any time to waste on this mortal girl.  
Zoe snapped her fingers, mentally trying to weave the mist around her and the girl. "You do not see knives," Zoe told the maiden. "I was never here."  
The girl harmlessly blinked at the commands. "Um… no. Those are knives, and you are right in front of me."  
"Who are you?" the lieutenant of Artemis demanded.  
The girl huffed indignantly. "Rachel Elizabeth Dare. Now are you are going to answer my questions or should I call security?"  
"No," Zoe said. "I will answer your questions. It is just, that I am in a hurry. Also, in trouble."  
"Both?"  
"Umm. Yeah."  
The girl looked over Zoe's shoulder and her eyes widened.  
"Bathroom!"  
"What?"  
"Bathroom. Behind me. Now!"  
Zoe didn't understand why, but she listened to the mortal. Without complaint, she slipped into the boy's restroom and left Rachel Elizabeth Dare standing outside.  
Zoe tried not to gag at the revolting odors that filled the room. Boys were disgusting.  
She couldn't help but think that Percy was an exception.  
She instead, tried to put her ear up against the door and concentrated on what she heard. The sounds of clattering, hissing sounds of skeletons grew, as they came closer. Her grip tightened around her hunting knives.  
Zoe was not worried about the maiden. If she was truly mortal, the skeletons would not pay any attention to her. But just in-case, Zoe prepared herself to burst out fighting. Then, the girl began to talk.  
"Oh my god! Did you see that kid? It's about time you got here. She tried to kill me! She had these knives for god's sake. You guys let knife-wielding maniacs inside a nation landmark? I mean jeez! She ran that way towards those turbine thingies. I think she jumped over the side or something."  
The skeletons clattered excitedly. Zoe heard them move off. Rachel peeked in. "All clear. But you'd better hurry."  
She looked shaken. Her face was gray and sweaty.  
I looked around the corner. There were now three skeletons, all running towards the other end of the balcony. The way to the lift was clear.  
"I owe you one, Rachel Elizabeth Dare."  
"What are those things?" she asked. "They look like –"  
"Skeletons?"  
She nodded uneasily.  
"Do yourself a favor," Zoe said. "Forget what you saw. Forget about me, and forget about the skeletons you saw today."  
"Forget you tried to kill me?"  
"Yeah, that too."  
"But who are you?"  
"Zoe Night–" Zoe began, but then the skeletons turned around. "Gotta go!"  
"What kind of name is Zoe Nightgottago?"  
Zoe didn't respond. She bolted for the exit.  
________________________________________  
The skeletons opened fire. Zoe was about to duck the barrage of projectiles, but there was no need. The bronze angels stepped in front of them and folded their wings like shields. Bullets pinged off of them like rain off a corrugated roof. Both angels slashed outward, and the skeletons went flying across the road.  
"Man, it feels good to stand up!" the first angel said. His voice sounded tinny and rusty, like he hadn't had a drink since he'd been built.  
"Will ya look at my toes?" the other said. "Holy Zeus, what were those tourists thinking?"  
As stunned as Zoe was by the angels, she was more concerned with the skeletons. A few of them were getting up again, reassembling, bony hands groping for their weapons.  
"Trouble!" Bianca said.  
"Get us out of here!" Thalia yelled.  
Both angels looked down at towards them.  
"Zeus's kid?" One asked.  
"Yes!"  
"Could I get a please, Miss Zeus's Kid?" the other angel asked.  
"Please!"  
The angels looked at each other and shrugged.  
"Could use a stretch," the second one decided.  
And the next thing she knew, one of them grabbed Thalia and Zoe, the other grabbed Bianca and Annabeth, and they flew straight up, over the dam and the river, the skeleton warriors shrinking to tiny specks below us and the sound of gunfire echoing off the sides of the mountains.  
________________________________________  
"Tell me when it's over," Thalia said. Her eyes were shut tight. The statue was holding on to them so they couldn't fall, but still Thalia clutched his arm like it was the most important thing in the world.  
"Everything's fine," Zoe promised.  
"Are… are we very high?"  
She looked down. Below them, the snowy tips of the Sierra Nevada mountains zipped by. She stretched out her foot and kicked snow off one of the peaks.  
"No," Zoe answered. "Not that high."  
"We are in the Sierras.'" Annabeth yelled. She and Bianca were hanging from the arms of the other statue.  
"I have hunted here before. At this speed, we should be in San Francisco in a few hours," Zoe pitched in.  
"Hey, hey, Frisco!" Their angel said. "Yo, Chuck! We could visit those guys at the Mechanics Monument again! They know how to party!"  
"Oh, man," the other angel said. "I am so there!"  
"You guys have visited San Francisco?" Bianca asked.  
"We automatons gotta have some fun once in a while, right?" Their statue said. "Those mechanics took us over to the de Young Museum and introduced us to these marble lady statues, see. And—"  
Zoe scowled at the blatant objectification of women – albeit statue versions.  
"Hank!" the other statue, Chuck cut in. "They're kids, man."  
"Oh, right." If bronze statues could blush, Zoe could swear Hank did. "Back to flying."  
They sped up, so she could tell the angels were excited. The mountains fell away into hills, and then we were zipping along over farmland and towns and highways.  
Zoe got bored and started shooting arrows at random billboards as they flew by. Every time she saw a Target department store—and they passed dozens of them—she would peg the store's sign with a few bulls-eyes at a hundred miles an hour.  
Thalia kept her eyes closed the whole way. She muttered to herself a lot, like she was praying  
"You did good back there," Zoe told her. "Your father listened."  
It was hard to tell what she was thinking with her eyes closed.  
"Maybe," she said. "How did you get away from the skeletons in the generator room, anyway? You said they cornered you."  
Zoe told her about the mortal girl, Rachel Elizabeth Dare, who seemed to be able to see right through the Mist.  
Zoe remembered Percy had mentioned the girl the last time around. Zoe didn't know if the girl was of importance, but she figured she better file away that information for later.  
Thalia nodded. "Must be nice to be a regular mortal." She said that as if she'd given it a lot of thought.  
It took a few minutes, but Zoe slowly drifted off into a deep sleep...  
________________________________________  
It was dark out.  
Zoe was standing in what appeared to be someone's house, but yet for some reason felt incredibly familiar.  
A mirror was in front of her.  
She looked at the reflection of herself.  
She surprisingly looked older, which shouldn't have been possible considering she was a huntress.  
Her outfit was rather normal-albeit a bit formal. She wore a pale, silver ball-gown, and matching silver heels.  
She didn't have her tiara on.  
But what surprised her was her face...  
She was wearing makeup!  
Well... Not exactly, it was makeup, but it wasn't in the traditional sense.  
Her eyes were lined in the darkest mascara, and she had blood red contact lenses on.  
Her lips were veiled in the deepest red she could imagine and dribbled to the side.  
Almost like blood.  
Her skin was pale. Very pale.  
Almost like she had never seen the light of day in centuries.  
It was a stark contrast to her coppery, tanned skin.  
She almost liked like one of those vampires that Mavis was going on about the other day.  
Just as Zoe was coming to terms with her appearance, she was engulfed with a hug from behind her.  
The person's arms looked male.  
Zoe had no control over her actions, instead of breaking the vile man's neck, she turned around and wrapped her arms around the other person's neck.  
Zoe couldn't see the man's face, but she could make out his raven hair.  
"You look beautiful, my vampire princess."  
Zoe inadvertently blushed at the strange man's words.  
"You look handsome, my vampire prince."  
The man raised his head, revealing his face to Zoe.  
Percy Jackson...  
________________________________________  
"Where you guys want to land?" Hank asked, waking Zoe from her nap.  
Zoe looked around, finding they had made it to San Francisco.  
"There," Annabeth suggested. "By the Embarcadero Building."  
"Good thinking," Chuck said. "Me and Hank can blend in with the pigeons."  
We all looked at him.  
"Kidding," he said. "Sheesh, can't statues have a sense of humor?"  
As it turned out, there wasn't much need to blend in. It was early morning and not many people were around. They freaked out a homeless guy on the ferry dock when they landed. He screamed when he saw Hank and Chuck and ran off yelling something about metal angels from Mars.  
They said their good-byes to the angels, who flew off to party with their statue friends.  
"What do we do now?" Thalia asked  
Zoe rolled her eyes, "Excellent question, daughter of Zeus."  
"The winter solstice is the day after tomorrow." Annabeth pitched in, "Thalia holds a valid question."  
Zoe began to think. They didn't have Percy to disguise himself to capture Nereus. Then again, they wouldn't even need the greasy old man now that Zoe knew what the group needed to know.  
"We need to –"  
Zoe was cut off by a bright golden flash.  
"Zoe!" Shouted a familiar masculine voice.  
The huntress's eyes widened in surprise, "Apollo?"  
The blond sun god flashed them a wide grin, "Hey there Zoe, been a while."  
Zoe scoffed, looking at the sorry excuse of a god.  
"Nice to see you too, Fred," she remarked, using the pseudonym Apollo had used the last time he had visited the Hunters of Artemis.  
Apollo burst into laughter. At her joke, or at the quest as a whole, she did not know.  
"What do you need Lord Apollo?"  
Annabeth was the one who asked the question.  
"Oh nothing, just wanted to tell you that Artemis said to wait until the day of the solstice to enter the garden."  
Zoe looked confusedly at the sun god. Why would Artemis have them not go into the garden for another two days. They quest was early, it would've been beneficial to stop Atlas and rescue Athena as soon as possible.  
"Just trust her." Apollo looked down at his sundial. "I gotta be going, before Zeus takes notice and vaporizes me. Ciao!"  
And like that, the sun god had flashed away.  
"Now what?" Bianca asked.  
Thalia stared pointedly at Annabeth, and Zoe knew what the brunette was suggesting.  
Annabeth seemed to catch on the what the other girl was implying.  
"No! We are not going there!"  
Bianca had a mixture of shock and confusion written on her face, at the sudden outburst.  
"Come on Annabeth. I know your dad lives here, and he would take us in for the time being without any hesitation."  
The blonde wildly shook her head.  
"It is true. We need some place to stay, we do not exactly have any money with us for a hotel."  
Annabeth glared at Zoe when her words of truth had been spoken.  
With a frustrated sigh, the daughter of Athena relented. Wordlessly, she led them to the residence of Frederick Chase.

________________________________________  
Chapter 27: Test  
________________________________________  
Percy was in a room he recognized as his own back in Manhattan.  
He was back in at his mother's house.  
There was a mirror in front of him.  
It reminded him of a previous dream.  
He was clad in a raven black tuxedo and a sea green tie.  
He still had a gray streak that contrasted heavily with his dark black hair.  
His skin was pale and his lips were tinted red.  
He subconsciously picked up a cloth and began to wipe his face.  
Slowly but surely, the makeup began to rub off his face, revealing his naturally tan skin.  
"Had fun?" A familiar voice broke the silence.  
"I did." His answer was short and to the point, but a smile tugged at his lips.  
"You killed it at the party, Percy."  
Grinning like a fool, Percy spun around, locking his gaze into the volcanic black pits of one Zoe Nightshade.  
Her makeup was still on, unlike himself.  
"You weren't so bad yourself, my Nightshade."  
With a soft smile on her face, the girl stepped forward. Percy cupped her cheek and brushed a strand of hair away from her face.  
He leaned in closer until their lips were mere inches apart.  
"You have something on your face," he said to her.  
With crimson flush adorning her face, Zoe began attacking Percy with her handbag that he somehow never noticed.  
________________________________________  
Percy woke up sweating. He looked around.  
Silver.  
Silver?  
He was in his tent.  
Memories of the previous day began to flood back into his mind.  
His first day with the Hunters had been much less than fun…  
His muscles were sore, but he thankfully had not too many cuts or bruises.  
The entire day, yesterday had consisted in either training or travel. With Artemis leading, they had travelled nearly 400 miles through mountain and desert to the western banks of Great Salt Lake.  
Percy had finally been allowed rest at around five in the morning.  
The hunters had been less than welcoming at first, but soon grew indifferent to his presence.  
Percy looked around his tent; he never got a proper chance the previous night – well, a couple of hours ago – to take in his living conditions.  
The tent glimmered with silver lining. The floor was covered with a soft animal hide and seemed to almost be alive.  
The sides of the tent were mostly plain, save for one window-like opening on either side, which could be closed using a zipper, similar to the entrance.  
Sunlight poured through the twin openings.  
Percy heard a knock on the post by his tent.  
"Wake up Perseus."  
He recognized to voice.  
"Just a second, Rachel."  
The two had gained some sort of pseudo friendship over the course of the night. While most hunters – save for Phoebe – had avoided him like the plague, the short mortal hunter was more than welcoming of his presence.  
In fact, the two of them were locked in conversation for most of the duration of their ungodly trek.  
Slipping on a new shirt, courtesy of Artemis, he stepped out of the tent, and into the wilderness.  
'Come on sleepy head," Rachel smiled, "Brunch!"  
________________________________________  
It was probably strange for a hunter of Artemis to be vegan, but there she was; surrounded on all sides by girls pigging out on deer meat, Rachel Berry sat in silence slowly munching on her salad.  
Percy almost laughed.  
After that incident yesterday, Percy had learned to be… careful around the hunters. He took the safe option and sat away from them.  
The hunters, for the most part, ignored his existence and spoke casually among themselves. Percy couldn't help but notice how much they acted like a family.  
Percy also noted the absence of a certain goddess. He figured that Artemis was probably off to do her duties as the moon goddess.  
His internal musings were suddenly disturbed by a bright flash.  
Speak of the devil…  
"Time to begin training my hunters. And Percy," she turned to him.  
A few hunters chuckled, while Rachel sent a sympathetic glance towards Percy.  
The whole lot of them filed out of the dining area and made their way towards the Archery range.  
"Girls, practice accuracy for an hour and speed for another. I need to introduce our guest to our methods."  
Percy couldn't decipher the hidden message by the emphasis.  
The goddess had an evil glint in her silver eyes that made Percy gulp nervously. He had a feeling like he was going to be in for a little torture.  
The girls whittled away, and Percy was left alone with the moon goddess.  
"Percy," Artemis said. "Your blade."  
The boy pulled the pen out of his pocket so without question.  
"Last against me for five minutes and we will move on to the next part of your training. If you fail, you have no hope of going against Atlas."  
Nodding his head, Percy charged at the moon goddess, who unsheathed her hunting knives.  
Five minutes.  
Percy sliced with Anaklusmos to the goddess' midsection which was promptly parried, and retaliated with a similar strike from Artemis' left blade,  
Percy back-stepped to avoid the attack.  
"Your stance is fine; boy, but your strikes do not carry any weight," Artemis explained.  
Artemis charged at him.  
Percy raised Riptide to block, but he was taken off guard when the little goddess leaped over him and struck at his neck with a forward flip.  
Ducking under the knife, Percy tried to land an uppercut on the goddess, but she managed to evade the blow.  
Four minutes.  
Landing on her feet, Artemis spin around and began barraging Percy with quick and powerful slashes.  
Percy tried his best to avoid and block the strikes, but a few got through his guard, pushing him back slightly.  
Panting at the effort, Percy decided to change up tactics. He couldn't out maneuver the goddess, so he decided to overpower her instead.  
Focusing on strength, the boy charged at the goddess.  
A smirk playing on her lips, Artemis tried to block the strike but was left with shock written on her expression when one of her knives were knocked away from her from the blunt force of Riptide clashing against her crossed blades.  
Three.  
Artemis decided to stop fooling around and somersaulted away from the boy, picking up her fallen knife, she charged at the boy with renewed vigor.  
Percy narrowed his eyes in concentration; he still had to survive the encounter for three more minutes.  
Percy parried the goddess' first strike and evaded her second, spinning in a three-sixty Percy slashed at the goddess' neck.  
The goddess ducked under the hit and landed a solid kick to Percy's torso while his weight was shifted.  
The boy was sent onto his back; Artemis stalked up towards him and pointed one of her knives at his throat.  
"Yield?"  
Percy smirked. "No."  
Two.  
Twisting his body, he tripped the goddess and got back on his feet.  
The goddess didn't stay down however and charged at the boy yet again.  
Percy braced himself for impact; the goddess had both knives out and had a murderous look on her face.  
She was probably frustrated that Percy had managed to stay in the game for this long.  
One.  
Percy struck at Artemis with the flat of his blade just as the goddess had come within range; Artemis simply diverted the blade with her left blade and struck at Percy with her other one.  
Percy leaned back, narrowly avoiding the knife.  
Seeing the goddess, Percy got an idea. Rearing his head back he shot his forehead forward, catching the goddess with a powerful headbutt.  
Artemis recoiled in pain, and Percy took advantage. He charged forward and swiped at the goddess with riptide.  
Unfortunately, Artemis had just managed to reorient herself just in the nick of time, as dodged the attack.  
Percy was getting frustrated. He hadn't managed to land a single hit against the goddess, and Artemis knew this fact, as seen from the playful smirk that played on her lips.  
Thirty seconds.  
Percy played defensive to stall the time.  
Artemis charged at him, slicing wildly with both her knives. Percy was dripping with sweat, he blocked and parried as many as he could.  
Artemis finally broke through his guard and brought her blade to his throat.  
"Yield."  
Zero.  
Percy smiled, relaxing his posture.  
"I survived the five minutes," he shrugged.  
Artemis scowled, "Barely," she growled out. "As though as it is hard for me to say this, you are not bad Percy Jackson. Well… for a man at least.  
Percy pulled up a triumphant smirk. That was as close to a compliment he was going to get from the moon goddess. And she called him man instead of boy… That had to count for something at least.  
"Now for your second test," the moon goddess challenged. Artemis crouched low. "You have five minutes to hit me. Starting now."  
She vaulted backwards and sprinted away, leaving Percy in a cloud of dust.  
Percy sighed.  
Then, he ran after her.

________________________________________  
Chapter 28: Girl  
________________________________________  
Artemis was fuming as she sprung away from the son of Poseidon.  
None of her hunters had yet managed to last that long against her on their first encounter. Most gave up by the second minute of the first spar, and yet the boy had somehow managed to get past the first test, and that too, relatively unscathed.  
Though she supposed the boy did have an advantage due to his current… situation. He did have knowledge of the future... If that could somehow help him...  
Artemis smirked when she turned around only to find the panting boy trailing by a dozen yards. He was clearly struggling to keep pace with the hunter goddess.  
Artemis decided to go a little easier on the boy, so she stopped her sprint and turned around to face him. She was confident that the boy wouldn't be able to lay a single finger on her. And she had good reason to be confident, the only one who could best her in speed and agility was Hermes himself.  
Percy panted heavily when he finally caught up to her.  
"Thanks for that, by the way…" He glared at the goddess.  
"You are welcome, boy."  
Artemis had a playful tone in her voice, which only served to aggravate the boy further.  
It was obvious, he was trying to rile her up, so she would make mistakes so that she would be an easier target.  
Unfortunately for the boy, the goddess had a few thousand years of experience more than the mentally sixteen-year-old demigod.  
"Come at me, Percy," she challenged.  
Cracking his neck, the boy charged at the goddess. His skin glistened with sweat and his toned muscles rippled with exertion.  
Artemis could see why Zoe was attracted to the boy. Well, besides his incredible personality that is.  
Artemis dodged his first swipe and back-flipped away from the roundhouse kick the boy sent her way.  
She smirked.  
Two minutes had passed.  
While she still planned on training the boy regardless of his results in the test, she wanted to test the boy's ability.  
But that would not mean she was willing to go easy on the boy.  
She would not lose a game of agility, especially not to a boy.  
Artemis bounced away from the child, as he swung towards her. She instinctively went for her knives, but had to mentally hold herself back.  
She was in a game of cat and mouse. She wasn't going to attack, and there was no need for the blades while defending. Her sheer agility was more than enough.  
Artemis briefly glanced at her two knives.  
She had grown fond of the two blades that had been a gift from her brother after he had slain Python.  
One was named 'Dusk', made of celestial bronze, the blade gave off a silver hue when exposed to moonlight.  
The other, 'Dawn', was imperial gold and shone. Always.  
It was a useful flashlight nonetheless.  
Artemis deflected Riptide with her fingers again and pushed Percy back with a swift kick to the chin.  
Shaking off the pain, the boy charged again, seemingly attempting a different angle, he was crouched low and seemed as though he was about to pounce on her. (Strike one)  
Artemis did not let her mind wander into the gutter.  
Just when Artemis shifted her guard to block an aerial assault, the boy changed directions quickly and attempted to ram into the goddess head on.  
Moments before Percy met with the goddess, she panicked and teleported behind him.  
"Hey! You cheated!"  
Artemis gave him a cheeky grin, "I didn't say I couldn't do that."  
Percy glared at her.  
"Alright fine. No more teleportation."  
Another grin appeared on his face, "Thank you, milady"  
Artemis could probably sense his sarcasm from a mile away.  
"It would do you good to show me some respect boy. Need I remind you that I do have a tendency of turning young boys like you into adorably fluffy little creatures."  
The boy just gulped and nodded.  
"You better step up. Two minutes remaining."  
With a flourish, Artemis flipped away from him and began running back towards the archery range.  
With a groan of frustration, Percy chased her back towards the hunters.  
________________________________________  
It was six minutes later, with a final pant, Percy collapsed, leaning against a pine for support.  
"I'm disappointed boy, I gave you five extra minutes and you have yet to please me."  
Artemis smirked at his fallen form.  
The boy had tried his best to land a hit on the virgin goddess, but soon found out that if Artemis didn't want to get touched, no one would be able to touch her.  
"Not fair…" the downed boy groaned, "You are way too fast. You can't expect me to handle that."  
"Now get up. We need to work on that stamina of yours."  
The boy struggled to his feet.  
"But don't think you're off the hook. I'm going to have a little fun with you first."  
The boy had a confused look gracing his expressions.  
Artemis gleamed.  
"I thought of turning you into a jackolope at first, but because you survived my first test, I'm thinking something a little more… tasteful."  
The boy's eyes widened and an expression of fear began to appear on his features.  
"You don't mean – "  
He was cut off by a bright flash that enveloped his field of vision.  
When the light died down, he looked around in confusion, probably expecting something drastic?  
"What happened?"  
Percy's voice had a higher pitch.  
"What did you do to me?!" The voice was very feminine indeed.  
Artemis took a good look at her creation.  
Percy's raven black hair now grown out.  
Percy's face had rounded a bit and gained an almost almond-like shape.  
Percy's lips were full and naturally a deep red.  
Percy's shirt clung to his expanded chest.  
Percy's hips had widened.  
Percy's eyes grew with realization.  
Then, with an almighty thump, she passed out.  
________________________________________  
"Wake up, Perci," Artemis smiled, looking down at the young girl's sprawled form. Her hair framed her face, accentuating her features.  
The girl looked up at the goddess, a dazed expression gracing her features.  
That's when Artemis dumped a gallon of water upon the girl's face.  
The water, of course did not bother the young boy-turned-girl, in fact, it rejuvenated her.  
"I had the weirdest dream. You turned…me… into…" Her eyes widened, arching up from the forest floor. "It wasn't a dream!"  
By now, all the hunters had diverted their attention towards the two. Most were snickering, but Phoebe had burst into laughter.  
"Change me back!" the boy-turned-girl pleaded to the hunter goddess.  
Artemis pretended to ponder over the matter.  
"Nope."  
"Pwease!"  
Perci's puppy dog face was almost too cute to resist, especially now that he had been turned into a girl.  
Almost too cute.  
"I'll turn you back at the end of the day." Artemis sneered, then rolled her eyes, "You look way better as a girl anyway."  
Her hunters snickered.  
"So, you admit that I look good?"  
A playful smirk played on Perci’s lips, apparently behaving like a girl came naturally to the boy, because along with the smirk, she had wiggled her hips a bit too.  
Perci turned the joke on her.  
Artemis flushed a crimson hue.  
"Hun - hunters, get back to tra - training." Artemis stuttered, before turning to Perci, "Prepare for Hades."  
________________________________________  
Hades was the right word.  
Artemis had given Perci (forced her to wear) enchanted bracelets that worked as gravity modulating devices. Basically, it made her ten times heavier.  
This of course led to slower movements, more energy required for everything and, of course, more efficient training.  
To top it all off, the girl had to get used to her new (temporary) body.  
While the bracelets severely limited the girl, once they came off, Artemis knew that the difference would be astounding.  
She never trained her hunters using the bracelets. The only reason she was even using them, in fact, was because she needed to improve Perci a lot and in a very short amount of time.  
The golden bracelets had originally been a prank gift from Apollo; Artemis found a loophole in using the bracelets for a different purpose.  
Artemis looked on as the newly turned girl struggled to keep up her sprint. Sweat poured from every exposed piece of skin and her clothing was drenched.  
Artemis figured that an hour of sprinting with the bracelets on would be enough for now.  
"Perci. Stop."  
The panting girl stopped running. Artemis could tell that she was absolutely exhausted.  
"You may rest for fifteen minutes. Do not take the bracelets off. After your break, another hour of running. We need to work on that speed and stamina of yours."  
She wrinkled her nose.  
"Actually, take half an hour off. Bathe in the river and get a change of clothes too. I trust you wouldn't mind having the body of a beautiful female."  
Perci blushed a deep crimson and scrambled away, clearly far too exhausted to point out that Artemis had just called her beautiful.  
With the younger girl gone, Artemis was left to her own devices. There was, of course a reason she had changed the boy into a girl.  
She may have made it out as a joke, but the actual reason was actually far more practical.  
She could only give her blessing to maidens.  
She usually would never even consider turning a boy into a girl, just to bless them, but by Zeus, the boy had somehow managed to win her over.

________________________________________  
Chapter 29: Train  
________________________________________  
Percy awoke with his body aching everywhere.  
He took a look at himself.  
He sighed in relief because he was back to normal.  
The hunters had traversed over five hundred miles – across sparse freezing desert – in the matter of less than a single day. The hunters had to make it all the way to the Bay Area before the winter solstice, so it had seemed beneficial that they upped from their usual laxed pace in favor quicker speed in order to reach their destination in time.  
Percy really had to thank Artemis for that. The two-hundred-hour trek from Great Salt Lake to Yosemite Valley had been covered in less than the tenth of the expected time.  
It had been a long nineteen hours, but it had been worth it.  
The long march had taken all night and the entire morning. But finally, the huntresses reached their breakpoint.  
The rich woodlands mountains of Yosemite Valley, a sanctuary for everything. While the hunters had taken the initiative of setting up the camp for the night, Percy took it as an opportunity to explore the national park, citing the excuse that he needed to get readjusted to his old body.  
After getting up from the air bed that the Hunters had supplied her, Percy wandered into the woods, taking in the nature around him. He was, of course, more of a city person, he'd grown up in the Big Apple after all, but couldn't help appreciate the picturesque view that was presented to him.  
Many times, he found herself comparing everything – like the high tree line – the steep granite cliffs – and the wild life of the valley to Central Park. Central Park had its collection of large granite boulders – large oaks, and of course the infamous Central Park Zoo.  
But everything here was at a grander scale, and a lot more natural. Percy almost wished he could've visit during less… pressured times.  
His large tennis shoes became soggy, as he hiked through the snow-riddled woods. Many of the trees were sparse of leaves, having eased into a cold winter sleep.  
Percy still had the golden bracelets that Artemis had given her, which continued to weigh his arms down like a thousand pounds. The bracelets were uncomfortable, to stay the least, but she tried not to complain as she tried to distract herself with the scenery.  
After the initial shock of the transformation had worn off, Percy hadn't found it all too difficult to adapt to his new body.  
Overall, she felt leaner, more agile, with definitely helped while following the Hunters of Artemis. Yet, she found herself still as strong as she normally would be.  
And the distinct lack of… large breasts helped out a ton. Percy didn't know what would've come up if she had to learn to handle… new body parts. Luckily, the matter hadn't yet arisen.  
As he rummaged along the snowed-in mountain trail, his legs and feet pleaded for rest. Percy just ignored the feeling. She had to build up the endurance for pain, knowing what to expect at Mount Tam.  
He chided herself for the thinking.  
This was his one time to relax. He wasn't going to waste it.  
He continued on with his leisurely trek, his mind drifting back to the grueling training he had been forced to endure the day before.  
________________________________________  
After she had returned from her short bath and rest, Artemis had Perci do another hour of sprinting around the snow-ridden woods. Perci found herself having twigs and pinecones stuck in her – now long – hair. Despite the freezing mountain air, she was drenched in sweat.  
Sadly, Artemis did not allow her a period of rest, and they moved on immediately to the next part of their training.  
Artemis had commanded her to uncap Riptide. Perci uneasily pulled out the blade to defend herself, but was caught off-guard when Artemis started without warning. Artemis began to mercilessly beat the crap out of the already exhausted girl.  
When the girl had finally regained her bearings and decided to try and fight back, Artemis upped her offense, and Perci was sent flat on her bottom, probably a hundred more times before they finally stopped for dinner.  
Artemis briefly commented about how she was impressed that the girl had managed to pull through her torturous training without giving up.  
Perci had been too tired to respond.  
After a whole-hearty meal of roast chicken and sautéed mushrooms – which Perci had no idea how the hunters found the ingredients for – Artemis promptly doused the half-dead girl with ice-cold freshly melted snow.  
While most would have been annoyed, Perci was actually glad that she was blasted with the water. The cool temperature served to wake up her mind, while the water rejuvenated her due to her innate ability as a child of Poseidon.  
And so, her own personal Hades continued right after the meal.  
Artemis decided that the speed and agility training was enough, and she began to work on Perci's strength.  
That is: Artemis made Perci carry a boulder for an hour.  
A big boulder.  
With the bracelets on tight, just for good measure.  
Perci had fallen to her knees within the first five minutes.  
Her second attempt was more successful. She managed to hold the two-hundred-pound boulder on her thin shoulders for nearly thirty minutes before her knees gave out on her.  
Luckily Artemis prevented the rock form turning the girl into a demigod pancake.  
After fifteen minutes of being chastised, Artemis decided to put off the boulder holding, in favor of regular exercises.  
Well... comparatively regular.  
Perci had nearly fainted when she was told to drop to the ground and do three-hundred push-ups.  
One boon was that Artemis said that she could take a fifteen second break after every thirty push-ups.  
Ten sets of thirty push-ups later, Perci was tasked with 300 sit-ups and crunches to be done in tandem.  
All in all, Perci was trapped in that one area until sunset, including the time it took for the push-ups.  
After the grueling routine, she was finally allowed to take the rest of the day off until dinner. Training would restart after that.  
Perci estimated that she had an hour left to rest and relax. She decided it was probably the best choice that she'd take a soak by the creek nearby – the one that fed into the falls.  
Tired and unclean from her training in the woods, Perci strolled to find a nice secluded spot away from the camp to take a bath. So, one could imagine her surprise when she found Rachel fricking Berry in the river.  
Naked.  
Perci might or might not have screamed and covered her eyes in horror.  
Rachel might or might not have commented that 'they were all girls so it was fine.'  
Perci thought she would die from all the blood that rushed to her face at that.  
She had almost forgotten that little fact.  
Rachel finally took a compromise and decided to wear her undergarments so that Perci wouldn't faint from embarrassment right then and there.  
Unfortunately, she refused to get out of the water.  
Sighing in frustration, Perci climbed into the creek, discarding none of her clothing.  
The cool water felt great against her skin and she allowed herself to get wet so the stream could carry away the filth.  
The two of them had soon gotten into a deep conversation.  
Perci was really glad that she had managed to befriend at least one person in the hunt. She was also glad that she wasn't getting ambushed by the man-hating group of girls.  
Though she supposed, technically, she was a girl so the hunters had no actual reason to hurt him… Even they knew that she was actually a guy.  
The conversation she was having with the other girl eventually reached an abrupt halt when Rachel grew too flustered to speak coherent sentences. Her pale face was alight with a crimson blush. She seemed to be staring directly at her.  
Perci looked down to inspect what was apparently wrong.  
She soon realized.  
The water had made the thin fabric of her top translucent. She was made aware of her distinct lack of undergarments by the pink nipples and areolas that had become visible from the near see-through fabric of the shirt.  
Perci's face had gone a crimson red and she fainted from embarrassment.  
Rachel had jumped out of the water and had to run to Artemis because she thought something ill happened to the boy-turned-girl.  
________________________________________  
Perci awoke about twenty minutes later. She found herself in the infirmary bed and she had new clothes on.  
Artemis decided to extend her break just so the girl could have some time to rest after falling unconscious.  
Rachel brought her dinner.  
It wasn't as lavish as the day's lunch, but the stir-fried chicken and rice had done the job of filling the girl's belly.  
Perci famished groveled down the humble meal. She may have had been turned into a girl, but her stomach didn't seem to see a difference.  
After her food, Perci made her way back to the training grounds, where Artemis had her do yet another round of push-ups, sit-ups, and crunches.  
After being given another half hour to rest, Perci was yet again tasked to lift the rock on her shoulders.  
Surprisingly, she managed to do it.  
Artemis cracked a smile and congratulated her for her progress.  
The hunters were all given one final hour of rest before they began their journey through the night.  
At the first milestone, the only thought going through Perci's mind was; one mile done, five-hundred-and-forty-nine to go.

________________________________________  
Chapter 30: Garden  
________________________________________  
They made it.  
They finally made it.  
Percy could make out the faint outline of Mount Tamalpais on the horizon.  
The skies were veiled in an orange hue, as the sun began to set. Low-lying clouds laid the covered the distanced city a gray haze.  
Percy estimated that the quest had probably just crossed the part where he had caught Nereus the last time around. Perhaps the Manticore had found them already?  
Getting used to his old body was rather easy, it came to him rather instinctively.  
Percy glanced down at his arms – the golden bracelets that Artemis had given him still weighed him down, but he had grown oddly accustomed to having the weights in his wrists.  
He knew for a fact that Artemis' near torturous training had successfully paid off. He hardly felt winded after the two-hundred-mile jog from Yosemite.  
San Francisco was just as he remembered it to be.  
It was still probably the most beautiful city he'd ever seen: kind of like a smaller, cleaner Manhattan, if Manhattan had been surrounded by green hills and deep fog. San Francisco Bay laid to the east. Everything from large freighters, sailboats and islands littered the water, and the Golden Gate Bridge stuck up out of the fog.  
The hunters clearly failed to see his absolute awe at the beauty of the city.  
Their expressions ranged from focused to slightly nervous, the latter being one Rachel Berry.  
Artemis commanded the hunters to up their place. They needed to get Percy to the rest of the quest before dusk.  
Percy began to wonder how the rest of them would react to his sudden appearance, would they be shocked? Happy? Both?  
Neither?  
He was really looking forward to seeing Zoe again...  
His eyes widened.  
He meant, Zoe and the others, of course. He mentally slapped himself for the thought.  
They were approaching the shoreline when Percy heard a certain, unmistakable voice.  
"I do not need those foolish undead! The General thinks I am worthless? He will change his mind when I defeat you myself!"  
Thorn.  
"We beat you once before," the voice belonged to an annoyed Thalia.  
"Ha! You could barely fight me with a goddess on your side. And, alas… that goddess is preoccupied at the moment. There will be no help for you now."  
Percy noticed a smirk that appeared on Artemis' lips.  
"That is where you are wrong, foul beast."  
The Manticore's eyes widened, as Artemis and her band of hunters (plus Percy) emerged out of the undergrowth, the shock that was on all four of the questers' faces was absolutely priceless.  
Zoe in particular looked absolutely overjoyed that Percy was alive, but she had a glint in her eyes that spelled trouble for Percy. Annabeth and Bianca seemed to be avoiding running up to him and tackling him with a giant embrace. Thalia tried looking wholly indifferent, but the wide grin on her face proved quite the contrary.  
"Questers, continue. We will deal with the Manticore."  
With a quick nod, the quest quickly retreated from the scene – knowing full well they were under a quickly closing deadline.  
Percy's eyes met Zoe's.  
Her toughened exterior seemed to crack as soon as her obsidian orbs med with his sea green ones.  
"Percy!" Zoe shouted.  
To his, and to the hunters' surprise, Percy was enveloped in a giant embrace by the black-haired girl. Oddly enough, Artemis had a small smile adorning her face.  
This was followed shortly after by the rest of the quest tackling him in a giant group hug.  
"You're alive!"  
He wasn't really sure who had been the one to ask the question.  
"Questions later, we need to go!"  
Zoe nodded at Percy's words and turned her heel, "We better get going."  
They ran towards the streets – leaving the Hunters to have a little fun.  
________________________________________  
As they passed the last ridge before the summit, there was a buzz in the air.  
Percy froze, forgetting what he was supposed to do. Luckily, Thalia tackled to him to the side, before a lightning bolt struck right in the middle of where the group had been standing.  
Thalia screamed up at the sky: "Really? My own father –"  
Luckily, they had been able to convince it that it wasn't true. That it must've been the work of the titans, to distract them.  
Thalia seemed reluctant, but she knew it wasn't the time to argue. They had a goddess to save.  
When the dust cleared, Percy was still on the side of the mountain, but the road had turned to soft dirt. The grass was thicker. The sunset made a blood red slash across the sea. The summit of the mountain seemed closer now, swirling with storm clouds and raw power. There was only one path to the top, directly in front of them, and it led through a lush meadow of shadows and flowers: the garden of twilight, just like how he'd remembered it last time he was here.  
Percy had been shocked, at first when they were struck by lightning. He expected that event to not follow through because Mr. Chase's car was nowhere to be seen. If not for Thalia's quick save, they'd have all been roasted.  
Finally, they took the right step, and the barren snow-capped mountaintop shimmered away.  
If it hadn't been for the enormous dragon, the garden would've been the most beautiful place one would have ever seen. The grass sparkled with silvery evening light, and the flowers were such brilliant colors they almost glowed in the dark. Stepping stones of polished black marble led around either side of a five-story-tall apple tree, every bough glittering with golden apples.  
"The apples of immortality," Thalia said in awe. "Hera's wedding gift from Zeus."  
"Guarded by Ladon," Annabeth pointed out.  
The serpent's body was as thick as a booster rocket, glinting with coppery scales. He had more heads than one could count, as if a hundred deadly pythons had been fused together. He appeared to be asleep. The heads lay curled in a big spaghetti-like mound on the grass, all the eyes closed.  
Then the shadows in front of the five began to move. There was a beautiful, eerie singing, like voices from the bottom of a well.  
The Hesperides.  
Four figures shimmered into existence, bringing four young women who looked very much like Zoe.  
They all wore white Greek chitons that all looked about five millennia behind the trend. Maybe they were going for a vintage look.  
Their skin was like caramel. Silky black hair tumbled loose around their shoulders. It was strange, but Percy had never really realized how beautiful Zoe was until he saw her siblings, the Hesperides. They looked just like Zoe—gorgeous, and probably very dangerous.  
A crimson flush began to adorn his cheeks.  
"Sisters," Zoe said coldly.  
"We do not see any sister," one of the girls said back. "We see four half-bloods and a Hunter. All of whom shall soon die."  
"You've got it wrong." Percy eased, stepping forward. "Nobody is going to die."  
The girls studied him like last time. Their eyes glazed over him like oozing volcanic rock, glassy and completely black.  
"Perseus Jackson," one of them started.  
"Yes," mused another. "I do not see why he is a threat."  
"Who said I was a threat?"  
The first Hesperide glanced behind him, toward the top of the mountain. "They fear thee. They are unhappy that this one has not yet killed thee."  
She pointed at Thalia.  
"Tempting sometimes," Thalia admitted taking a playful glance at me. "But no, thanks. He's my friend."  
"There are no friends here, daughter of Zeus," the girl said. "Only enemies. Go back."  
"Not without my mother," Annabeth said bravely. Her eyes were full of determination.  
Zoe continued, "We must approach the mountain."  
"You know he will kill thee," the girl said. "You are no match for him."  
"Athena must be freed," Zoe insisted. "Let us pass."  
The girl shook her head. "You have no rights here anymore. We have only to raise our voices and Ladon will wake."  
"He will not hurt me," Zoe countered.  
"No? And what about thy so-called friends?"  
"Just let us pass sisters, we mean you no harm."  
The oldest glared at Zoe, "But you seek to harm out father. Thine own blood."  
Zoe glared back, "That titan stopped being my father when he kicked me out of my home!"  
The youngest stepped forward, "That is thy own fault Zoe. You were the one who betrayed us. And then preceded to aid that despicable hero into defeating Ladon!"  
Zoe's expression grew weaker, and the nymphs knew that they had touched a weak spot.  
"You chose that egotistic god over your own family!"  
It was the third that spoke up.  
"I do not regret that choice. If not for that, then I would have never met Milady Artemis."  
Zoe's voice crew calmer and colder with each word.  
"I do not care anymore that I lost a family that harbored no love for me. I have a family now. And Atlas is not part of it."  
The only quiet nymph flinched, it seemed as though Zoe's words were physically hurting her. She had a pained expression on her face.  
But she did not speak.  
"Your new family will be crushed by father; he is undefeated in combat."  
Percy stepped forward, a determined expression on his face.  
"So far."  
The oldest nymph scoffed, "You have not a chance against him, mortal."  
She waltzed over to him and placed her index finger on Percy's chest, pushing down hard.  
"You are but a mere mortal, who are you to face the mighty titan Atlas?"  
The boy stood straighter, "Percy Jackson."  
She scoffed again, "I know of thy name boy, I know of your achievements."  
Her gaze appeared to soften, "I truly pity thee, so hopeful, so confident. Yet, you stand no chance against myself, let alone my father."  
Percy gripped riptide tighter.  
"Then fight me, Aegle."  
Her eyes narrowed, "So you know my name. It will not help thee. Prove to me your worth mortal. Defeat me in duel, and the five of you are free to go and face your death at the hands of Atlas."

________________________________________  
Chapter 31: Duel  
________________________________________  
"Your new family will be crushed by father; he is undefeated in combat," Aegle stared down upon the group with grimace.  
It was true. Even the gods had trembled when they faced against the titan of endurance.  
Percy stepped forward – a determined expression on his face, clearly disregarding the warning from Zoe's eldest sister.  
"So far," he stated simply. He had a distinguishable smirk on his face that Zoe couldn't quite place. He seemed much cockier than before he went missing.  
What made Zoe conscious, was whether the cockiness simply a façade?  
The nymph scoffed. "You have not a chance against him, mortal."  
Aegle waltzed over to him and placed her index finger on Percy's chest, pushing down, probably with some force behind it, but the son of Poseidon refused a flinch.  
"You are – but a mere mortal. Who are you to challenge the mighty titan Atlas?"  
The boy stood straighter, "Percy Jackson."  
She scoffed once again, "I know of thy name boy, and I have been informed of your achievements." The nymph's gaze softened with pity. "I truly pity thee. So hopeful, so confident. Yet, you stand no chance against myself, let alone my father."  
There was still a certain venom that was laced within her words.  
Percy's grip on Anaklusmos tightened.  
"Then fight me, Aegle."  
Her eyes narrowed, "So you know my name. It will not help thee. Nevertheless, I will let you prove your worth. Defeat me in duel, and the five of you are free to go and face your death at the hands of Atlas."  
Percy simply uncapped his blade, with a smirk playing on his lips. "Then consider yourself defeated."  
Aegle's expression hardened. She took a good look at his blade.  
"Anaklusmos," she said with a bitter voice.  
The boy nodded briskly.  
"Your blade has reached yet – another god-ling. You continue to disappoint, Zoe."  
Zoe chose not to respond.  
Percy crouched and took a stance. One that Zoe immediately recognized.  
He was crouched low, his body slightly turned to the side, his shoulder facing his foe. The sword was held at hip level, the point facing Aegle.  
"You place yourself like a hunter, boy," Aegle said with disgust.  
"Tools of the trade."  
Zoe grew incredibly confused, Percy had showed up with Artemis all of a sudden, surprisingly alive and well. Now, only a few days later, he had the poise of a trained hunter. If what she thought was true, then Artemis had drilled him hard. That was, assuming that Artemis had actually trained him and not just flashed him over to the bay once he healed.  
Aegle narrowed her eyes at the son of Poseidon in front of here, before unsheathing her weapon.  
The Hesperide possessed a single leaf shaped bronze medium length Xiphos. It was a shimmering double-edged blade – bronze sword, complimented with a leather-wrapped grip and a flat hilt riveted with gold studs.  
In other words, an exact copy of Anaklusmos.  
With one slight difference.  
Instead of Anaklusmos, engraved on the blade was 'Thamvos'.  
Dazzle.  
"Now, you shall face the true strength of the eldest daughter of Atlas!"  
Aegle rushed at Percy with haste.  
The boy mimicked her motion, engaging in a charge at the nymph.  
Zoe's eyes widened as Percy was slower.  
His agility seemed to have nearly dropped by twenty percent.  
His movements were almost – sluggish.  
Percy swung his blade at the nymph, the two blades became locked in a fizzing struggle.  
Zoe noticed golden bracelets on both the boy's wrists.  
"You show both strength and speed boy. I am impressed," Aegle complimented.  
Percy simply smirked and swung at her again, which was promptly deflected.  
"But that is not merely enough to defeat me, boy. I am millenniums old."  
Percy's smirk widened, "I have a knack of defeating old guys"  
Aegle growled and began her own offense, "This garden will be thine grave boy."  
Percy avoided a few strikes and blocked the rest, "get with the times – grandma. And use English from this century," he taunted.  
He was clearly trying to rile her up, and it seemed to be working.  
"I grow tired of your insolence boy. You will die!"  
Aegle rushed at the boy with renewed vigor and swung to his left. Narrowly avoiding the hit, Percy retaliated with his own swing, which was quickly followed by a punch to the gut.  
The nymph panted at the blow. She stepped away from the duel.  
Raising her sword into the air, Aegle called out loudly, "THAMVOS!"  
Zoe realized what was going, but before she could warn Percy, a blinding flash of light blinded all of the questers.  
Zoe rubbed her eyes vigorously, when her vision finally cleared, she was shocked at what she saw.  
Percy had not recovered for the move, and the nymph was taking full advantage of that. Aegle's sword retained the bright glow, but wasn't quite as intense as the flash. Aegle rushed forward with a burst of energy at Percy and Zoe could only watch in shock as Aegle pushed her sword into Percy's chest.  
It was a blow that should've killed him.  
But the blade simply bounced off from his chest.  
It was impossible, but the proof that stood with confidence was right in front of her.  
Percy had the Curse of Achilles.  
"That was a cheap shot, didn't your daddy teach you to play fair."  
Percy seemed to have been cured of his blindness.  
"Im – Impossible."  
That was probably the first time Zoe had seen her sister stutter.  
Percy smirked again once more. "Not quite."  
Percy straightened and glared at her.  
"If you deem that you should resort to using those little tricks, I only suppose that I will have to resort to the same."  
Percy relaxed his muscles.  
Aegle watched him curiously, clearly awaiting him to reveal his trump card.  
Percy raised both his arms to his chest. He closed his eyes, hiding his sea green orbs.  
The bracelets began to glow with a faint silver glow. The glow slowly began to spread to the rest of his body, enveloping him in an aura that resembled moon rays.  
Crossing his arms, Percy slowly pulled off each bracelet.  
He then, slowly opened his eyes. They seemed to be mostly unchanged, but they seemed to have a certain moonly glow to them.  
Zoe began to ponder about just what had gone through in the past couple of days. Percy almost seemed like a completely different person.  
"Your trick is removing your worthless jewelry?" Aegle's eye twitched at being forced to wait for nothing.  
Percy grinned, "I wouldn't exactly call these worthless."  
Percy dropped one to the ground.  
THUD!  
Everyone's eyes widened when the small bracelet that the boy dropped ended up creating a crater on the grassy terrain.  
With another thud, the second bracelet was dropped.  
"Man. It feels good to finally get to take those damn things off."  
Percy stretched his arms out in a lazy yawn.  
"I'm afraid I'm going to have to cut this battle short," he said sadly.  
Then, Percy charged at the nymph at unbelievable speed. His agility had probably quintupled.  
Quintupled!  
He was five times faster than before.  
His agility alone almost rivaled that of Artemis'! The second fastest Olympian after Hermes.  
Actually, that wasn't true.  
Artemis was definitely faster than him by a long way, but the boy's speed was nothing to scoff at. Zoe could only imagine what would happen if Percy repeated the apparent training he went through again.  
Aegle barely had time to register what was happening to her before she was knocked back, she couldn't even regain her stance before Percy had Anaklusmos at her throat.  
His silver glow faded away. His eyes had reverted to its old shade.  
"Let us pass."  
Begrudgingly nodding, Aegle opened her eyes to speak, "Father will still kill you, boy."  
"We will see about that. Let's go guys."  
The four others could only mutely follow him, unable to comprehend what had just happened.

________________________________________  
Chapter 32: Climb  
________________________________________  
The group couldn't find the ability make haste through the gardens.  
Their shock prevented them from doing that. They barely noticed when Percy quickly picked up his golden bracelets after the battle.  
It wasn't until group surpassed the gardens, that the Hesperides resumed their song in the shadows behind them.  
But the music no longer sounded peaceful and beautiful as it were before — more like the deepening dire soundtrack of a funeral.  
Thalia seemed to be the first to break free from the spell of muteness.  
"What. The. Heck. Happened?!" She asked.  
If it weren't for his uncanny ability of hydro-kinesis, Percy would've dripped sweat.  
"I would propose the same question. Percy?" Zoe cut in, breaking Percy's attention away from his sister in all but blood.  
"Start immediately after Talos." Annabeth was the one who continued.  
"And what were you doing with Lady Artemis?"  
And finally, Bianca.  
Percy took in a deep breath, seemingly preparing himself for what he was about to say.  
"I blacked out after I was crushed by that tin can. When I regained consciousness, I was in Apollo's infirmary. With Lady Artemis by my bedside."  
Percy chose to ignore the gasps that erupted from the four other questers, "She interrogated me and when I assured her that all of you were fine, I Iris-Messaged you all. You were in the dam."  
Another gasp, "And you didn't tell us you were alive!"  
That was Thalia.  
"I was supposed to have been 'lost', seemed like a good idea to keep it from you guys. Sorry"  
Percy rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.  
With reluctance, the daughter of Zeus seemed to accept his reasoning, but with a troubled expression gracing her features.  
"Then Artemis offered to train me for a few days," Percy continued.  
Cue the third round of gasps, but Zoe seemed to understand. The training from the hunting goddess would certainly explain much about what had happened to the boy. His calmer, more confident poise, his stance, the abnormal growth spurt in speed and agility. It all made sense in her mind. After all, she wasn't much different.  
"I was with the hunters till we reached San Francisco."  
Annabeth looked contemplative, "And that incredible speed?"  
Percy produced the two golden bracelets from the pockets of his silver parka, "Enchanted to make the wearer feel ten times heavier. Running a few hundred miles with it does wonders on your speed and stamina. And strength, of course"  
He couldn't help but smirk, while he mock-flexed his biceps causing all four of the girls to gain a crimson hue at his rippling muscles.  
"Wait! So, you ran all the way to San Francisco?!" Bianca asked, perplexed.  
Thalia's eyes were wide.  
Percy nodded briskly.  
"That is because of m 'lady Artemis makes her hunters run ten times as fast with near infinite stamina."  
Percy grinned, "Yeah."  
Zoe turned towards the son of Poseidon and narrowed her eyes, "And just what about that silver glow around you?"  
The demigod gained a confused expression.  
"What silver glow?" he asked.  
Zoe gave him a pointed stare.  
"I really have no idea, Zoe. Honest."  
It was then that Bianca decided to cut in: "It looked just like the glow of a hunter."  
Zoe's eyes widened. "But that's impossible! Lady Artemis only gives her blessing to – to maid - maidens..." Her speech slowed down, gears began to whirl in her head.  
Percy's eyes twitched.  
Annabeth managed to catch Percy's anxiety building up. "What are you hiding from us, Seaweed Brain?"  
Annabeth narrowed her eyes at her best friend.  
"Artemisturnedmeintoagirl!" Percy blabbered together, not giving a moment for the others to comprehend a word he said.  
No one caught a word he spoke.  
Their stares drove into him, forcing him to repeat.  
Percy coughed at an answer, "Artemis. Umm – she turned me – me into –"  
His words were interrupted with a voice crack. His voice climbed up an octave.  
"No! Not again!" His voice was distinctly feminine.  
A bright flash enveloped everyone's field of vision.  
What greeted the four questers was a sight to behold.  
Percy's raven black hair now grown out, and flowed down to his shoulders.  
Percy's face had rounded out a bit and gained an almost almond-like shape.  
Percy's lips were full and naturally a deep red.  
Percy's silver shirt clung to his expanded chest.  
Percy's hips had widened.  
Percy looked down and groaned. He covered up whatever he could from his friends, but the damage had already been done. He – no, she had been turned back into a girl…  
Artemis appeared out of thin air, "Like what you see, girls?"  
Thalia and Annabeth burst out laughing at their friend's humiliation, while Zoe and Bianca tried their best to keep theirs in.  
Sadly, they were both unsuccessful.  
Perci was fuming.  
"You promised to not do it again!" Her voice was clearly disgruntled.  
"No, I didn't!" Artemis snickered, before sticking her tongue out. With a tap on the head, Perci was, again, enveloped in a burst of light, before appearing back to his normal self.  
He sighed in relief, melancholically.  
"At least that explains the glow," he said flatly.  
Artemis winked at Percy's friends. "He never even knew I blessed him"  
Percy blinked, before the moon goddess sighed.  
"The Ophiotaurus is safe for now, son of Poseidon. Defeat the General. Save Athena." Artemis told.  
She flashed away.  
Without a beat later, the teasing began to start.  
Thalia was the first to start. "You make a very cute girl, Percy!" Thalia shoved her cousin playfully laughing.  
"Oh, shut it Sparky! Or I'll tell them about your little problem with hei –"  
Thalia glared at him, before rolling her eyes at the crimson faced demigod.  
"You wouldn't dare," she threatened.  
"I will never be able to un-see that," Annabeth commented snickering at her friend.  
Percy groaned loudly.  
"What surprised me is Lady Artemis' interaction with Percy," Bianca added.  
Zoe nodded, "True."  
Percy shrugged, pleased by the change in subject. "I'm just that awesome."  
Annabeth elbowed him. "We can talk about how awesomely cute of a girl, you'll make later. We should get a move on. We only have a few hours until the morning of the solstice and my mom's still in chains."  
The group all nodded, knowing they were under a deadline. They ran the rest of the way there.  
When they reached the upper slopes of Mt. Tam, they were greeted with ruins; blocks of black granite and marble as big as houses. Broken columns. Statues of bronze that looked as though they'd been half melted.  
"The ruins of Mount Othrys," Thalia whispered in awe.  
"Yes," Zoe said coldly. "It was not here before. This is bad."  
"What's Mount Othrys?" Bianca asked, feeling a little behind.  
"The mountain fortress of the Titans," Zoe explained.  
Annabeth decided to jump in: "In the first war, Olympus and Othrys were the two rival capitals of the world. During the conflict, Othrys was blasted to pieces."  
"But… how is it here?"  
Zoe looked around cautiously as we picked our way through the rubble, past blocks of marble and broken archways. She pulled out her hunting knives, just to be sure. "It moves in the same way that Olympus moves. It always exists on the edges of civilization. But the fact that it is here. On this mountain. This is not good."  
"Why?"  
"This is Atlas's mountain," Zoe said nervously. "Where he holds—" She froze. Her voice was ragged with despair. "Where he used to hold up the sky."  
Her words filled the air with dread. They had reached the summit.  
A few yards ahead of them, gray clouds swirled in a heavy vortex, making a funnel cloud that almost touched the mountaintop, but instead rested on the shoulders of a twenty-year-old woman with dark raven hair and a tattered white Greek dress. Athena. Her legs were bound to the rock base with thick gleaming celestial bronze chains.  
"Mom!" Annabeth rushed forward, but Athena caught on with her daughter's intentions. "Stop! It is a trap. You must leave now."  
Her voice was strained. She was drenched in sweat. They had never seen a goddess in pain before, much less an Olympian, but the weight of the sky was clearly too much for the wisdom goddess.  
Annabeth eyes began to tear. She squirmed out Percy's hold on her, and ran forward despite her mother's protests. With fruitless efforts, she tugged at the chains.  
A booming voice spoke from behind them: "Ah, how touching."  
They turned.  
When they did, they found the General was standing in the midst of the entryway, in his brown silk suit in all his glory. At his side were Luke and half a dozen dracaenae bearing the golden sarcophagus of Kronos.  
In the fading light, the sarcophagus glowed with a luminous glint.  
Then, Luke pulled forward and produced a tied-up figure from behind him. Percy recognized the wavy blonde hair. Annabeth?  
She had her hands cuffed behind her back and a gag in her mouth.  
Luke pulled out his blade and placed the point under her chin.  
How?  
Percy and Thalia both whirled their heads around, their eyes resting on Athena, who no longer had Annabeth by her.  
"Luke," Thalia snarled facing the son of Hermes. "Let her go."  
Luke's smile was weak and pale. He looked even worse than he had three days ago in D.C. "Sadly, that is the General's decision, Thalia. But it's good to see you again."

________________________________________  
Chapter 33: Othrys  
________________________________________  
"Luke," Thalia snarled, facing the son of Hermes. "Let her go."  
Luke's smile quivered. His skin was ghostly pale. He looked even worse than he had three days ago in D.C. "Sadly, that is for the General to decide, Thalia. But it's good to see you again."  
Thalia spat at her former friend.  
The General chuckled. "So much for old friends. And you, Zoe. It's been such a long time. How is my little traitor? I will enjoy killing you."  
"Do not respond," Athena groaned from under the weight of the sky. "Do not challenge him."  
"Atlas."  
Percy had so much venom in his voice, that Thalia barely recognized it as from him. Percy never gets so hateful about anything.  
The General glanced at him with pity. "So, even the stupidest of heroes can finally figure something out. Yes, demigod, I am Atlas, General of the Titans, Terror of the gods. Congratulations, and as compensation, I will kill you presently, as soon as I deal with this wretched girl."  
"You're not going to hurt Zoe," Percy argued. "I won't let you."  
The General sneered. "You have no right to interfere, little hero. This is a family matter."  
Thalia's eyes narrowed.  
"Family?" Bianca asked, wording Thalia's thoughts.  
"Yes," Zoe said bleakly. "Atlas is my father."  
The horrible thing was: Thalia could see the family resemblance.  
Atlas had the same regal expression as Zoe, the same cold proud look in his eyes that Zoe sometimes got when she was mad, though on him it looked a thousand times more menacing. Atlas was everything that Thalia had originally hated about Zoe, and none of the traits that Thalia had come to appreciate.  
"Let. Athena. Go!" Percy demanded, taking a step forward.  
Atlas walked leisurely to the chained goddess. "Perhaps you'd like to take the sky for her, then? Be my guest."  
Percy opened his mouth to speak, but Athena yelled out before him, "No! Do not offer, Perseus! I forbid you."  
Atlas smirked. He knelt next to Athena and tried to touch her face, but the goddess bit at him, almost taking off his fingers.  
"Hoo-hoo," Atlas chuckled. "You see, demigod? Lady Athena likes her new job. I think I will have all the Olympians take turns carrying the burden they had foolishly placed upon me. Once Lord Kronos rules again, this will be the center a new palace. It will teach those weaklings some humility. As we dine, we shall have some entertainment!"  
"I don't understand," Bianca said. "Why can't Athena just let go of the sky?"  
Atlas laughed. "How little you understand, young one. This is the point where the sky and the earth first met, where Ouranos and Gaia first brought forth their mighty children, the Titans. The sky still yearns to embrace the earth. Someone must hold it at bay, or else it would crush down upon this place, instantly flattening the mountain and everything within a hundred leagues. Once you have taken the burden, there is no escape."  
Atlas smiled. "Unless someone else takes it from you."  
He approached them, studying Thalia and Percy with mild amusement; Bianca being left ignored. "So, these are the best heroes of the age, eh? Not much of a challenge. Stringy, at best."  
"Fight us," Percy taunted. "And we will see."  
"Have the gods taught you nothing? An immortal does not fight a mere mortal directly. It is beneath our dignity. I will have Luke crush you instead."  
"So, you're another coward," Percy rebutted. Thalia noticed the glint in his eyes, Percy was egging Atlas on. Same as he had done with Aegle.  
Atlas's eyes glowed with hatred. With difficulty, he turned his attention to Thalia.  
"As for you, daughter of Zeus, it seems Luke was wrong about you."  
"I wasn't wrong," Luke managed. He looked terribly weak, and he spoke every word as if it were painful. If Thalia didn't hate him as much as she did, she almost would've felt sorry for him. "Thalia, you still can join us. Call the Ophiotaurus. It will come to you. Look!"  
He waved his hand, and next to them a pool of water appeared: a pond ringed in black marble, big enough for the Ophiotaurus.  
"Don't think about him!" Percy's voice rang out.  
She tried to make her mind go blank. She tried to think about Annabeth. She tried to think about her brother, and about Luke before he went all psycho. Anything but the Ophiotaurus.  
"Thalia, call the Ophiotaurus," Luke persisted. "And you will be more powerful than the gods."  
"Luke…" Her voice was full of pain. "What happened to you?"  
"Don't you remember all those times we talked? All those times we cursed the gods? Our fathers have done nothing for us. They have no right to rule the world!"  
Thalia shook her head trying to shake the dizzying thoughts clogging her head. "Free Annabeth. Let her go."  
"If you join me," Luke promised, "it can be like old times. The three of us together. Fighting for a better world. Please, Thalia, if you don't agree…"  
His voice faltered, as if her saying no would utterly break his heart. If he still had one. "It's my last chance. He will use the other way if you don't agree. Please."  
"Do not, Thalia," Zoe warned. "We must fight them."  
Luke waved his hand again, and a fire appeared. A bronze brazier, just like the one at camp. A sacrificial flame.  
"Thalia," Percy said. "No."  
Behind Luke, the golden sarcophagus began to glow. As it did, she saw images in the mist all around them: black marble walls rising, the ruins becoming whole, a terrible and beautiful palace rising around them, made of fear and shadow.  
"We will raise Mount Othrys right here," Luke promised, in a voice so strained, it was hardly his. "Once more, it will be stronger and greater than Olympus ever was. Look, Thalia. We are not weak."  
He pointed toward the ocean, and her heart fell. Marching up the side of the mountain, from the beach where the Princess Andromeda was docked, was a great army. Dracaenae and Laestrygonians, monsters and half-bloods, hell hounds, harpies, and other things I couldn't even name. The whole ship must've been emptied, because there were hundreds.  
"This is only a taste of what is to come," Luke said. "Soon, we will be ready to storm Camp Half-Blood. And after that, Olympus itself. All we need is your help."  
For a terrible moment, Thalia hesitated.  
She gazed at Luke, her eyes full of pain, as if the only thing she wanted in the world was to believe him. Then, she pushed away her memories and emotions. She leveled her spear. "You aren't Luke. I don't know you anymore."  
"Yes, you do, Thalia," he pleaded staring into her eyes. "Please. Don't make me… Don't make him destroy you."  
There was no time.  
If they waited any longer, the army would reach the top of the mountain. They would be overwhelmed.  
Thalia looked at her friends, Bianca, Zoe and Percy. For a moment, all of them knew exactly what was to come, and Thalia decided, it wasn't the worst fate to die fighting alongside friends like this.  
"Now," Percy said.  
Together, they charged.  
________________________________________  
Thalia went straight for Luke. The power of her shield was so great that his dragon-women bodyguards fled in a panic, dropping the golden coffin in the dust, before leaving him alone. But despite his sickly appearance, Luke was still quick with his sword.  
He snarled like a wild animal and counterattacked. When his sword, Backbiter, he met Thalia's shield, a ball of lightning erupted between them, frying the air with yellow tendrils of power.  
Percy and Zoe stood back, staring hesitantly at Atlas. They were wise enough not to dare attack the Titan, and the Titan wouldn't dare break the Ancient Laws, by attacking them first.  
Annabeth managed to break free from her bindings, and attacked Luke with renewed vigor.  
While the sickly demigod was occupied, keeping Annabeth at bay, Thalia took a quick glance towards Percy, Bianca and Zoe.  
Percy and Zoe were crouched next to Athena. They seemed to be arguing.  
Thalia was pulled away from her vision by the shrill scream of Annabeth.  
When she turned to link towards Luke, he had somehow apprehended her. His blade was to her throat.  
"Don't make me do this Thalia."  
Annabeth's voice was muffled by Luke's sickly hand covering it.  
His blade was dangerously close to her neck.  
"Don't do it Luke."  
Thalia took a careful step forward.  
"You leave me with no choice, Thalia."  
His blade inched closer.  
"Luke..."  
Thalia dropped her spear to the ground, "Let her go Luke. Did you forget what we had?"  
Luke took in a shaky breath, "I do. But you have to choose. If you are not with me, then you are against me."  
His blade was drawing blood. Annabeth's expression was of pure fear.  
"Please Luke!"  
Thalia was down to begging now.  
"I'm sorry Thalia."  
Before he could do anything, his grip on the girl was violently wrenched away by one very pissed off goddess.  
"Don't lay a finger on my daughter!"  
Athena charged at the son of Hermes.  
She was mere feet ahead of him when a small smirk began to appear on the blonde's lips.  
"I won't have to," he smiled.  
Her sword was just inches away from driving into Luke's neck when his image shimmered and disappeared.  
Athena slowed down but it was already too late.  
Moments later, the Goddess of Wisdom – who prided herself in never being outsmarted in battle – found her sword hilt deep, in her daughter's gut.  
"ANNABETH!"

________________________________________  
Chapter 34: Atlas  
________________________________________  
"The sky," Percy pleaded to the goddess in chains. "Give it to me."  
"No, boy," Athena wheezed out. Her forehead was beaded with metallic sweat, almost like quicksilver. "You don't know truly what you're asking. It will crush you!"  
"I can take it! What I cannot do is face a titan."  
"The weight of the sky will kill a mere mortal like you."  
"I'll die anyway," Percy told her. "Give me the weight of the sky!"  
Percy didn't wait for her answer. With haste, he took out Riptide and slashed cleanly through her chains. Then he stepped next to her and braced himself on one knee—holding up his hands—and touched the cold, heavy clouds.  
For a moment, Athena and Percy bore the weight together. It was the heaviest thing he'd ever felt, as if I were being crushed under a thousand trucks. He wanted to black out from the pain, but breathed deeply.  
Pretty much exactly the same as last time.  
The human body often judges things in a weird manner. If you carry something light, you know it is light, and can pretty accurately guess how much it weighs. Carry something heavier, and you can still do the same.  
The sky on the other hand only led to the response of 'TOO HEAVY!'  
Then Athena slipped out from under the burden of the sky, leaving the son of Poseidon to handle the sky's weight alone.  
Every muscle in his body seemed to have been ignited aflame. His bones felt like they were being smoldered in fire. He wanted to scream, but didn't have the strength to open his mouth. He began to sink, lower and lower to the ground, the sky's weight crushing him.  
His mind was beginning to cloud, when suddenly the weight on Percy's shoulders halved. The dots in his vision faded, and his sight refocused.  
"Zoe?"  
The girl had sweat beading her forehead, Atlas had chosen to simply glower at the two of them. They hadn't challenged him for a reason.  
He was too damn strong.  
And Percy wasn't going to risk Atlas getting a chance at killing Zoe.  
"We need you to fight," Zoe managed to grunt out, looking at him with mad grimace.  
"I can't leave you under the sky!"  
Zoe tried her best to glare at him, "Go, you insolent boy!"  
Hesitantly nodding, Percy crouched lower, ridding himself from the overbearing burden.  
Zoe let out a choked scream.  
"I'll get Atlas under there. Hang on Zoe."  
She tried her best to nod her head. Sweat began to pour down her face, moistening her copper skin.  
Percy turned to face Atlas, who was locked in an intense duel with Athena.  
Although weakened, the wisdom goddess was still a formidable foe, but Percy could see that the goddess wasn't at her best. Her movements were sloppy and she wasn't thinking straight.  
Fortunately, Atlas wasn't a foe that required too much strategy. He simply relied on his enormous strength to overpower his enemies.  
Percy turned to Bianca, she was crouched on the ground, firing arrow after arrow at the approaching monsters, it wasn't much, but she did what she could.  
The daughter of Hades wasn't nearly strong enough to be more that a hindrance while fighting foes such as Atlas or even Luke, who was still a master swordsman.  
Thalia and Annabeth seemed to have a handle on Luke, so Percy decided to lend his hand to Athena, who was currently losing against the Titan. It wasn't too bad, but Percy could tell that the goddess was exhausted from holding the skies for so long.  
"Need a hand?"  
Percy smirked as he walked up to a panting wisdom goddess.  
Athena narrowed her eyes at Percy but nodded.  
Bianca, noticing his shout, turned and fired a few arrows at the Titan, hoping to distract him for a bit.  
"Fool!" Atlas screamed gleefully, swatting aside one of Bianca's arrows. "Did you think, simply because you could challenge that petty war god, that you could stand up to me?"  
Percy didn't say anything.  
He closed his eyes and focused.  
He felt, as a tug at the base of his gut began to form.  
A clear shimmer of a silver aura started to enveloped around him.  
He called it, 'Breath of the Wild.'  
When he opened his eyes, Atlas was taken aback by the pale silver orbs.  
"Contact lenses will not help you mortal," the titan snarled of might at him.  
Percy charged at the Titan.  
Atlas was undoubtedly surprised by the boy's incredible speed, but assuming that the boy was all speed and no strength, the Titan let his foe approach.  
Big mistake.  
Atlas was struck head on with a powerful punch to the gut, which sent him a few inches backwards. His guard was slow to come up.  
Percy swung with riptide with all his strength and somehow managed to get the Titan across the torso.  
Atlas grunted in pain as he kicked Percy away, staggering back. The titan stared at Percy with a new-found hatred.  
"I underestimated you, boy. Do not expect another hit on me." Atlas pointed his javelin at Percy.  
Percy took crouched low, readying himself.  
"You are poised like one of Artemis', and yet you are a male." Atlas narrowed his eyes, "Intriguing."  
Athena seemed to have recovered most of her energy by that time.  
The second time Percy charged, he had the wisdom goddess at his side.  
They took turns attacking Atlas. Their strikes landing in perfect synchronization, pressing Atlas to fall to just defense.  
Atlas managed to block a great majority of the hits, but a few strikes were getting through. Every hit that was dealt further exhausted the titan general.  
Athena obviously noticed Percy's stance and aura, but decided not to comment on it quite yet from what Percy could say.  
While Bianca punished Atlas with a round of arrows, they backed off regaining their strengths.  
Percy took a glance around and his eyes widened when he saw Luke holding Annabeth, with his blade at her throat.  
Before he could do anything, his grip on the girl was violently wrenched away by one very pissed off goddess.  
Annabeth was sent to the ground, and Luke back stepped.  
"Don't lay a finger on my daughter!" Athena charged at the son of Hermes.  
She was mere feet ahead of him when a small smirk began to appear on the blonde's lips.  
"I won't have to," he smiled.  
Her sword was just inches away from driving into Luke's neck when his image shimmered and disappeared.  
Athena slowed down but it was already too late.  
Moments later, the Goddess of Wisdom – who prided herself in never being outsmarted in battle – found her sword hilt deep, in her daughter's gut.  
"ANNABETH!" Percy's voice was strained, cracking at the end.  
________________________________________  
No...  
It wasn't possible.  
Annabeth couldn't die.  
It wasn't part of the plan.  
She was supposed to live.  
It was all his fault.  
He messed with the past.  
Percy punched the ground in frustration.  
To his immense surprise, he was bleeding!  
He wasn't supposed to be able to bleed.  
Atlas merely watched in amusement as the grief and surprise crossed Percy's face, but the grief was soon replaced by pain.  
Not emotional pain.  
Physical pain.  
Pain shot through Percy's lower back. The small of his back.  
The pain began to intensify.  
It was growing exponentially.  
Percy was sent to his knees.  
The pain was getting worse that the weight of the sky.  
"AHHH!"  
His wail of agony was sent out into the open.  
His vision began to blur.  
The pain reached a point where it felt like his bones were breaking.  
Every bone in his body.  
Cuts began to appear on Percy's supposedly unbreakable skin.  
Percy was openly crying at this point.  
The pain was too much.  
If felt like every single injury he had avoided due to the Curse, was coming back to him all at once.  
He felt his joints begin to bend at odd angles. His body began to spasm with uncontrollable rage. He became matted with sweat.  
Somebody said his name, but he couldn't make out the voice from the echoing wretches of pain.  
All he knew was the pain.  
His silver shirt was drenched in fresh blood. Blood from his own body. Blood that should not that penetrated his cursed skin.  
With one final shriek of agony, Percy's body couldn't handle the raging inferno of nociceptive torture.  
The last thing Percy saw was Luke being struck by something blue.  
And then his vision was too blurry to make out anything – but darkness.

________________________________________  
Chapter 35: Luke  
________________________________________  
No. it wasn't possible.  
It just wasn't possible.  
This wasn't happening.  
Oh gods. This wasn't happening.  
No. It just wasn't possible.  
She couldn't…  
Annabeth couldn't die. Not like this.  
Thalia's mind whirled from one idea to the next, trying to fill in a void of thoughts, trying to find reasoning in what had just happened before her eyes.  
Annabeth couldn't die.  
Thalia's gaze flickered towards the goddess, Athena. The wisdom goddess herself looked completely in distraught, deep in shock by what she had just done. Athena's blade was bloodied with her own daughter's blood.  
Athena's gray eyes were clouded over – in a mixture of horrified shock and grief. Annabeth's lifeless form crumpled and fell backwards onto the ground. The blade slid out of her with a sickening squelch.  
Looking away at the paralyzing scene, Thalia's electric blue orbs shifted to Bianca. The young daughter of Hades had seized firing her shots at the titan army – which was fast approach up the steps. Within mere minutes they could be surrounded.  
The young huntress instead was stunned and appalled by the events that had just occurred.  
Thalia then noticed Zoe, who was still bearing the gargantuan weight of her father's punishment. Her dark glossy hair now contained an easily defined gray lining at their roots – which clashed horribly against the sweat of her coppery skin.  
It could be seen that Zoe Nightshade was losing her battle with the sky. The titan Atlas watched in amusement as his eldest daughter suffered under the strain.  
Apparently watching his daughter's misery was more important than his own battle.  
About half the distance between her and the titan, Thalia settled her sights upon Percy. The son of Poseidon laid, kneeling against a tall pile of rubble; his twitching head bowed low – facing the ground. Thalia made out the rearing red streaks that marked his face. At first, she assumed it was grief, but his pained yell said otherwise.  
Percy's sea glistening eyes met with Thalia's.  
His eyes reflected an incredible amount of pain. Even just watching him, somehow an echo – a fraction of what he must have been feeling began to fall on her too. Looking at his feverish stare, Thalia's instincts told her that Annabeth's less than healthy condition was somehow causing this.  
Then, the blood came.  
Percy's body began to spasm. Invisible cuts and gashes began to tear across his skin.  
Blood. Blood from all over his form began to spew out. His arms. His shirt reddened.  
Percy let out another wail of agony, [Also, this detail might work. Might not. Dunno.] before a spasm caused his head to slam against a marble pillar rendering him unconscious. His form flattened and curbed into a fetal position.  
Somehow, Thalia broke away from the scene and came back to watching her best friend having a long bronze sword straight through her gut.  
Thalia's reality began to dawn upon her. For months, she had ignored agonizing truths that had welcomed her the moment she had awake from her seven-year slumber.  
Thalia felt her heart ache – as her best friend's eyes lost their sparkle of brilliance. They seemed to appear as lifeless as Annabeth's.  
At that moment – it was true.  
Annabeth was dead.  
She was gone for good.  
Thalia's furious and electric glare turned towards her former friend.  
The cause of all this pain.  
Luke.  
The daughter of Zeus began to crackle with electricity.  
"Luke." Her voice was deadly calm, as the full length of reality had fully set into her mentality.  
Luke had betrayed her. He had betrayed all of them.  
He had betrayed Annabeth. His family.  
Thalia didn't waste a moment. Her anger rose.  
Her vision tunneled into a mad red rage.  
She could only see the smirking form of Luke Castellan.  
"TRAITOR!"  
Thalia snapped.  
And with that, she lost control. Before Luke could respond, Thalia charged at the son of Hermes.  
One moment she was standing yards away from the blond demigod. The next instant, she was right on him.  
Luke anticipated her motions and countered her attacks – but was still caught off guard.  
Thalia growled in frustration and fought with an undying vigor. She pressed further with force.  
Luke sidestepped and struck her with backbiter.  
Thalia kicked him in the chest. He felt as heavy as building – but somehow, he fell over.  
Thalia ignored the searing pain and thrusted with all her might when the boy tried to regain his footing.  
The next thing she knew, she found her spear finding its way into the son of Hermes's chest. The skewer had missed his heart by a mere inch.  
The blue streak that had followed her earlier movements faded to a dim glow.  
Her eyes cackled with pure fury and energy.  
"Tha-" Luke chocked. His mouth began to bubble with his own blood. Luke stared down at his stomach.  
Thalia closed her eyes. She didn't let him finish his words. His words meant nothing to her but pain. Suffering.  
She focused all of the strength she had and focused her powers on her spear.  
"You killed her…" She sobbed.  
With one final grunt of exertion, Thalia willed everything she had into her spear as she twisted her weapon.  
She barely heard the boy's wail of pain.  
Thalia's strength loosened on her spear. Her senses came back to her, and with a heavy gasp, she stared at what she had done.  
The past few seconds were a blur to her.  
Her glow disappeared.  
Her anger dissipated.  
Her tunnel vision cleared.  
She looked down at her own trembling hands; and the long five-foot spear that they had held.  
Her gaze filtered to the pointed end of her weapon.  
Luke.  
He was dead.  
There was no doubt about that.  
His body had been burnt to a crisp. The body was barely recognizable. The only reason Thalia knew who the corpse belonged to, was because she had actually killed him.  
Her breath hitched. She had killed him. She killed Luke Castellan.  
The same boy who took her in when she ran away.  
The boy who always watched her back. The boy that took Annabeth in.  
The boy that taught her to survive. The boy that she had grown to love.  
The boy that betrayed her trust. The boy that tried to kill her.  
The boy that had taken Annabeth away from the world.  
Thalia felt the bile raise to her throat, and fell back; frightened at what she had just done.  
Stumbling away from her spear and the charred remains of Luck Castellan, Thalia threw up – her body not being able to handle the events of the day.  
Thalia heard the panicked squealing of the monsters underneath. The beast's panicked when they realized their master was dead. With renewed vigor, Bianca began to make quick work of the stragglers that remained.  
That's when the slow clapping stared.  
"Excellent, Demigod." Atlas bellowed, shaking Thalia out of her jittering daze. His voice was harsh, yet lined with wild amusement. "You are more of a monster than the ones you claim to hate."  
Thalia growled at the Titan.  
She charged; her spear lying forgotten inside Luke's chest.  
She didn't know how it happened.  
She didn't even know WHAT had even happened.  
But as she launched herself at the titan, she discovered her spear back in her hands.  
No... Her spear still remained in the charred remains of Luke Castellan.  
Her new weapon was made of pure electrifying voltage.  
She managed to catch the Titan by surprise and landed a good hit on the general, forcing him to grunt and be step back. Atlas growled at her and narrowed his eyes. His spear re-materialized in his calloused palms.  
It was then, that Athena finally broke away from her shock.  
Knowing Atlas' demise was as good as revenge for her fallen daughter, she joined Thalia in taking on Atlas.  
Atlas growled in frustration, regretting not having taken the advantage earlier.  
With one swoop, he kicked Thalia in the knee.  
With a loud yell of pain Thalia fell to the ground, her leg twisted. Her knee was shattered.  
She was disabled. She tried to stand up but endless pain instantly spiked from her leg when doing so.  
Athena seemed to regain her senses. She readied her stance.  
Atlas advanced, pressing Athena. She was fast, but his strength was unstoppable. His javelin slammed into the earth where the goddess had been a split second before, and a fissure opened in the rocks. He leaped over it and kept pursuing her.  
What Atlas did not realize was that she was leading him back toward Zoe.  
Thalia could only watch in morbid fascination.  
"You fight well for a girl," Atlas laughed. "But you are no match for me."  
He feinted with the tip of his javelin and Athena dodged. Thalia saw the trick coming. Atlas's javelin swept around and knocked Athena's legs off the ground.  
She fell, and Atlas brought up his javelin tip for the kill.  
"The second blood of a new war. One Olympian down, eleven to go," Atlas gloated. And he stabbed downward.  
As fast as thought, Athena grabbed his javelin shaft. It hit the earth right next to her and she pulled backward, using the javelin like a lever, kicking the titan general and sending him flying over her.  
Zoe loosened her grip on the sky, just as Atlas slammed into her. She didn't even try holding on. Atlas sheer weight pushed her out of the way, and the well-trained huntress recovered, rolling out of the way.  
The weight of the sky dropped onto Atlas's back, almost smashing him flat until he managed to get to his knees, struggling to get out from under the crushing weight of the sky.  
But it was too late.  
"Noooooo!" He bellowed so hard it shook the mountain. "Not again!"  
The titan Atlas was back under his burden.


	2. Hunters Arc

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Percy's eyes snapped open. He was no longer in the throne room... He wasn't even on Olympus, he was pretty sure. He was in the back seat of his mom's car, and he was shorter. He looked around himself, Thalia and Annabeth were soundly asleep, on either side of him, and his mom was focused on the snow covered road. The weird thing was, all of them looked younger.

________________________________________  
Chapter 36: Christmas  
________________________________________  
Percy was standing in front of a mirror that he was growing rather acquainted to.  
It seemed like every dream he had, that he hadn't already had in the past, took place in the very room that he was standing in.  
He stared at his own reflection.  
The Percy in front of him was older and wore a light green formal button-up shirt and dark blue formal pants. His shoes were the same shade of blue as his raven black hair. A gray streak was prominently displayed, breaking away from his boyish charm.  
Percy felt as his vision being obscured be long, slender fingers.  
"Merry Christmas, honey," said a voice he definitely recognized that time.  
"Merry Christmas, Zoe," he found himself saying. He felt as silent happy smile crept across his face.  
The boy heard a hearty chuckle from behind his back.  
"Guess I didn't have to ask guess who," Zoe said, as she uncurled her arms away from his eyes. Her voice was playful, much more than anything Percy could remember her voice being, outside of dreamscape.  
He smirked at the demi-titan.  
"Of course, I'd recognize my own girlfriend's hands," he said. That, confirmed it. If this was really a dream that showed a possible new future…  
Zoe popped her head from behind his shoulder stuck her tongue out at him in response.  
"Why do we even celebrate Christmas Percy? Isn't it that mortal thing, where this fat guy sneaks into people's houses through their chimneys and eats their cookies?"  
Percy shrugged in response. "I dunno. It's just a way of having fun. Getting time with family and friends."  
Zoe punched him in the shoulder and turned away. Percy mimicked her actions and turned away from the familiar mirror.  
He was in his room. Back in Manhattan at his mother's apartment.  
The warm aroma of his mom's blue cookies filled his nose. The walls were decorated, lights hanging off of every nook and cranny. Streamers and mistletoes studded the ceiling.  
Zoe smirked at him, and gave a silly pose showing of her clothes. His heart popped at the scene.  
"How do I look?" she said, with a suppressed smile.  
Older, definitely. Which never ceased to surprise Percy, considering that Zoe was a hunter. The girl had foregone her usual colors of silver and blue, option for festive colors instead.  
She still had her tiara on. Percy had yet to see her without it. Her hair was adorned with a similar streak of gray to his own, which clashed rather suddenly with her coppery skin.  
Percy loved it regardless.  
Percy paused, as he found his eyes travelling down her frame, taking in everything he saw.  
Zoe's eyes were bright and vibrant, full of joy. She seemed to have light makeup on, which was rather uncharacteristic of her.  
Percy lowered his gaze further.  
Zoe was wearing a white sleeveless top, which had a thin red trim doing across the porters and across the fabric of the shirt itself. Percy noticed subtle snowflakes which were a smidgen darker than the rest of her shirt.  
Percy looked at her legs.  
Zoe wore a long, red skirt that flowed down to her ankles, behind them were her trademark silver flats.  
The girl never wore heels, claiming that they were far too impractical for anything, not that Percy minded. He was just barely taller than her in the first place.  
Zoe extended her hand towards Percy; the boy noticed a certain golden bracelet that hung loosely off her skin.  
His eyes shifted down to his own wrists. He still had the golden loops around his hand.  
The second pair must have been a gift to Zoe form Artemis or Apollo. In all honesty, the gold color pretty much gave away the answer to Percy.  
"Come on, fish breath," Zoe groaned, poking him. "The others will be here any time now. You ready?"  
Percy smirked at her. Perfect opportunity to tease.  
"You don't seem to mind my breath when our lips are locked."  
Zoe flushed a deep crimson and punched him harder than before.  
"Let's go!"  
She grabbed his wrist and pulled him along out into the hallway.  
Percy was billed by Zoe until they ended up in Percy's kitchen. There, his mother was in the midst of preparing a meal. She had her back turned away from them, but it could be seen she had her apron on. Percy could only guess that it probably said something cheesy like, '#1 MOM' or something.  
"I got him out, Sally."  
The older woman turned around, a tray of her fresh, homemade cookies in hand. His mother was just as beautiful as ever, her eyes shone with a similar mirth as Zoe's.  
Percy could practically feel the drool forming as the cookies stared at him.  
The savory sweetness was within just an arm's reach away…  
He made a reach for one. Which Zoe slapped down.  
"Percy," his mom began, "No cookies till the guests arrive."  
Percy pouted, but he couldn't help but wonder who their guests were.  
It seemed like his curiosity would soon be answered however, because he just heard the doorbell go off.  
"I'll get it!"  
Percy ran to the door before the two girls could argue.  
When he reached the door, Percy swung it open, grinning widely.  
He was more than a little surprised by just how many people were stood outside his doorway.  
He was even more surprised at the sheer lack of males.  
Nico and Grover stood awkwardly to the side, nervous glances being thrown to their left as they were only a small part of a wider group of girls.  
Percy directed his gaze towards the center of the doorway.  
The first person he noticed was Artemis, she seemed to have forgone the silver too, and word an outfit similar to what Zoe was wearing, but the trims were silver instead of red.  
She seemed to have aged herself to one similar to that of his mother. In fact, she almost looked like the mother of the five girls who stood behind her.  
Percy first noticed Bianca and Thalia. Thalia looked exactly the same, but Bianca, surprisingly looked to be around sixteen.  
The daughter of Hades also had a tiara, not dissimilar to Zoe's, woven into her dark hair.  
The olive-skinned girl smiled kindly at Percy and squeezed Thalia's hand, which Percy just noticed was being held by the daughter of death.  
Behind the two, were three other girls, probably more hunters.  
Percy immediately recognized Rachel Berry, she looked exactly the same as the last time he saw the girl.  
Standing beside the first was a girl who Percy didn't completely recognize. The girl looked to be a Caucasian-American around fourteen and had red-brown hair that was pulled back in a ponytail.  
The girl had bright green eyes, fair skin with freckles, a scar on her right eyebrow, and a thin stature.  
Percy didn't know the girl, but he recognized her as one of the hunters from when he was training with Artemis.  
The final girl, Percy recognized. He could never mistake the girl's red hair and green eyes.  
Rachel Elizabeth Dare.  
Whelp... There were two Rachels now... That was bound to get confusing.  
"Merry Christmas!" they sang.  
Everyone chorused to each other, as Percy ushered them into his house.  
"Mom, the guests are here," he announced.  
Percy skilled at his guests.  
Zoe abandoned his mother in the kitchen and joined him in the living room, where Percy had seated everyone down.  
Nico and Grover took the seat furthest away from the hunters. Thalia sat beside Bianca, their fingers interlocked. They seemed to be leaning on each other, but Percy decided to ignore it.  
Artemis, and the two Rachels took another couch, with the other girl sandwiched between the two.  
Zoe squeezed down next to Percy without hesitance.  
"Zoe!" Artemis smiled at her best friend and daughter figure.  
Zoe smirked at the mood goddess and the two united in a warm hug.  
"You look old Lady Artemis, too many wrinkles. The hunters causing trouble without my guidance?"  
Artemis growled at Zoe and gave Percy a playful but annoyed look, which disappeared as quickly as it came. "It seems like Percy had rubbed off on you a little too much."  
Her eyes were narrowed at the boy.  
He simply chuckled and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, and laid back on the couch – out of sight.  
Artemis then turned to the unrecognized girl.  
"Introduce yourself, Ellie."  
The girl looked up at Percy, and waved. "Ellie Mathews, Daughter of Ares. Pleased to meet you"  
She extended her hand for Percy to shake, which he did eagerly after walking up to her.  
"Come on, lunch should be ready soon, I'll get the table set."  
Zoe got up, off the couch.  
Percy nodded and began to follow her, "I'll help."  
Zoe shook her head, her dark hair waving back and forth in a hypnotic trance.  
"Stay here and keep them company," she told him. It was not an option.  
Percy shrugged, "Suit yourself" as he retook his seat.  
Percy blinked, when his head began to throb.  
That wasn't right. He was in a dream.  
He shouldn't be able to feel pain in a dream.  
Percy's vision began to blur, and then spin. He saw as his face came down towards the coffee table.  
But before it came down on him, Percy's eyes snapped open with a gasp escaping his lips.  
He was dripping sweat. His dream was far too realistic, not that he minded having such pleasant dreams.  
He was in an infirmary. A place he recognized.  
Apollo's infirmary.  
Then, out of nowhere, Percy was tackled with a spine-crushing hug.  
"Percy!"  
He recognized the melodic voice.

________________________________________  
Chapter 37: Chariot  
________________________________________  
Zoe ignored her screaming muscles and shot to her feet.  
"Percy!" She screamed before stumbling over.  
Her aching bones begged for reprieve, but she refused.  
She finally managed to scramble over to the form of the son of Poseidon.  
He was clearly out cold, his body was disfigured at horrible angles, all of his bones seemed to have been broken, he was covered in enough blood to paint his entire visage red.  
Zoe's vision began to blur as tears began to form.  
He couldn't die.  
He was the only good man left on the planet, he couldn't just die…  
She didn't even have any idea why he was dying in the first place! During the midst of the moment, he had just suddenly collapsed, and was immediately caked in blood.  
Zoe barely noticed anything around her, she only held the boy close to her chest.  
She gasped.  
Lubb Dub, Lubb Dub.  
Heartbeat!  
The boy she loved was alive!  
Her mind backpedaled at the chosen words she thought within her mind.  
Loved?  
Yes, of course she loved her friend.  
As a friend.  
Only a friend.  
More?  
The weight of the sky had made her simply insane. Less than lucid. That was the only logical explanation she could give herself to reason with the fact that she was arguing with herself over whether she held feelings for the boy she clutched in her chest.  
She was a hunter for crying out loud!  
But on the other side, Artemis seemed to like the boy enough.  
She cleared her mind from all thoughts when she heard footsteps approach her.  
Athena was at her side; her eyes were still glazed over. Zoe averted her eyes from the virgin goddess. Thalia was leaning heavily on Bianca, as she limped over to Percy's downed form.  
"How is he? He's holding on?"  
Thalia's eyes were welled up with tears. She had just lost two of her friends, she didn't want to lose another.  
"Barely, his-his heart is beating."  
Zoe flinched at how timid her voice sounded. She was supposed to be the proud lieutenant of the hunters of Artemis, and yet here she was, crying over an insolent boy who was clutched close to her chest.  
"We have to get to Olympus. The meeting of the Winter Solstice is set to begin quite soon."  
Zoe nodded in agreement.  
"Annabeth needs a funeral." Bianca muttered somberly.  
Athena's stormy gray eyes darkened, she had killed her own daughter.  
Athena stepped back hesitantly towards the fallen form of Annabeth Chase.  
"I love you, my daughter."  
Athena placed her palm on Annabeth; her form was enveloped in a white glow and her body was wrapped in a shroud made of gray silk embroidered with black and brown owls. Then, the body then disappeared.  
"Her body is on Olympus. Her shroud will be burnt in the camp that she held so dear."  
Athena was visibly upset.  
The thunder and lightning were still boiling over Mount Tamalpais in the north. The goddess was so upset she flickered with silver light.  
"I must go to Olympus immediately," Athena stated. "I will not be able to take all of you, but I will send help."  
Athena called for her chariot, a gray structure with owls engraved onto the painted wood. It was similar to Artemis' but a flock of gigantic owls replaced the deer that Artemis would have on her own moon chariot.  
"I shall take Percy with me, I will get him to Apollo as soon as possible."  
Zoe wasted no time before she spoke up, "I will come too."  
Athena narrowed her eyes. The wisdom god hesitated, before meeting Zoe's eyes and nodded, "Very well."  
Zoe raised herself off the ground and lifted Percy bridal style. She clambered onto the wooden chariot and collapsed on the seat. Her strained body could only take so much.  
"Climb to the bottom of the mountain and go to the bay, Poseidon will help."  
Athena climbed onto the chariot and took off before the two could open their mouth to ask how Athena would manage to convince her mortal enemy to help the daughters of Zeus and Hades.  
Zoe felt the wind rush past her, making her disheveled hair to become more of a mess, but she couldn't bring herself to care.  
Soon, San Francisco was only a glittering crescent behind them, with an occasional flicker of lightning in the north.  
The only thing on her mind was Percy and pain.  
The latter seemed to be getting overtaken by the former though.  
She brushed some of the blood-soaked hair away from his forehead. His body was covered in gashes and he was bleeding heavily. Zoe didn't even care that the blood was staining her hunters' parka.  
The towns were zipping by faster now, islands of light thicker together, until the whole landscape below was a glittering carpet. Dawn was close. The eastern sky was turning gray. And up ahead, a huge white-and-yellow glow spread out before them—the lights of New York.  
"There it is." Athena's voice rang out, breaking Zoe away from her thoughts. She was pointing toward Manhattan, which was quickly zooming into view. "It has started."  
"What's started?" Zoe asked. Her body was still reeling from the pain, both emotional and physical, to make complete sense of the world.  
Then she looked where the goddess was pointing. High above the Empire State Building, Olympus was its own island of light, a floating mountain ablaze with torches and braziers, white marble palaces gleaming in the early morning air.  
"The winter solstice," Athena said. "The Council of the Gods."

________________________________________  
Chapter 38: Anchor  
________________________________________  
It took Phoebe the entirety of twenty-three seconds to react to what was presented before her eyes.  
The fact that she had been awoken at four in the morning by a loud shriek didn't help her shift away from the confusion.  
"Percy!" a familiar voice had awoken her from her slumber, the scene she was presented with caused Phoebe's jaw to fall on the floor. Her groggy mind struggled to comprehend where she was, and what she was seeing.  
Maybe she was just hallucinating?  
Maybe Zoe wasn't crushing a boy in a hug?  
Maybe the centaur blood was relapsing and her mind was playing tricks on her?  
That had to be it.  
That had to be what was happening.  
The was absolutely no possible way that her lieutenant, Zoe Nightshade would be caught hugging anyone – let alone a barely clothed male specimen in the dark.  
Her eyes widened as she backpedaled.  
Zoe was clad in only her hospital gown, one that was two sizes too big and barely hung onto her lithe frame. The boy, she recalled, Perseus, to his credit seemed awkward enough, not sure how to react to the situation himself. He had a weird constipated look on his face, and Phoebe had to bite her tongue to stop her laughter.  
But the boy was also shirtless and was only clad in his bare bloodied boxers.  
Phoebe decided to not interrupt the moment like she had planned to; instead, she opted for eyeing them cautiously from her vantage point. Of course, had the boy been anyone who wasn't Percy, then they would have probably been missing a certain body part that males hold quite dear. (I'm not talking about what you think I'm talking about, pervs)  
She held her bow ready for if (when) the boy would try something with the vulnerable hunter.  
It was not long, before Zoe realized what she was doing, and untangled herself from the son of Poseidon. "So – Sorry!"  
Her crimson flush was almost as dark as the boy's below her. Phoebe almost gasped at how soft the girl's voice was.  
"I- That's fine. I guess," Perseus managed to choke out, clearly embarrassed at his near nakedness. He pulled the sheets to cover his bare chest.  
Zoe's eyes softened, and a quip of a smile curved from her lips. "I'm glad you're alive."  
Phoebe was rather confused; her lieutenant was speaking in modern English!  
Yep. Definitely a relapse.  
Phoebe mentally scoffed, she must have been dreaming, because she knew for a fact that Zoe Nightshade spoke the English from four hundred years ago. The Hunters as a group had struggled to keep up the times – but their lieutenant was the worse. Zoe Nightshade had been adamant when refusing to continue learning the more modern slang.  
Phoebe stepped away, deciding to file the events away as a dream.  
Not one of reality, but simply a product of simple deliriousness. She decided to navigate her dream self to Apollo's kitchen to grab something to eat.   
She could barely make out Zoe's voice commanding Perseus to get some rest, as she tuned out everything else and focused on the warm glow that Apollo's kitchen emitted.  
'Apollo really needs to make healthier dining choices,' she thought silently as she stared at the contents within the godly fridge.  
________________________________________  
Two days ago, everything had gone normally enough for Phoebe. She had awoken seventeen minutes early and had thus taken the liberty to have the first bath in the stream. She was glad that she was able to relieve her sore muscles after having to have taken down the Manticore the previous day. Just as she gathered her clothes and made her way back to her tent, Artemis appeared at camp to awaken her hunters and to explain the current situation.  
The goddess had practically dragged the half-naked Phoebe over to Olympus. She hadn't explained much but said it was an emergency.  
When they reached Olympus, Artemis led, a now fully clothed, Phoebe straight to Apollo's temple and took her delving into the heart of the sun god's domain: The Infirmary.  
Artemis barraged her with information, out of which she was only able to catch snippets, what she did understand was; Percy is hurt, Zoe is with him, make sure no one gets killed.  
Phoebe had shrugged, her job sounded easy enough right?  
Phoebe was introduced into the infirmary, but elicited no response.  
What Phoebe first noticed was the streak of gray hair that cascaded down Zoe's shoulders. For some reason, Phoebe wasn't led to believe that the colored streak was a fashion statement.  
Zoe simply looked up at her with red and puffy eyes, completely uncharacteristic of her normal demeanor and gave her a small tearful smile before shifting her gaze back to the unconscious Percy. She replaced the wet wash cloth on his forehead wordlessly, leading Phoebe to believe that the boy might have had a fever too.  
The boy was covered in blood stained bandages, his expression was pained, but he was clearly alive. His chest rose and fell in a harmonic rhythm.  
Zoe hadn't spoken, nor left the boy's side since that moment, two days ago, when they had returned from the quest.  
________________________________________  
Phoebe groggily ambled over to the infirmary, like she had done for the past two days, playing caretaker for an unconscious Perseus and a distraught Zoe.  
She expected the same scene to play again; she would grab something from the kitchen, take the food over to Zoe, who seemed to not notice she was next to her. Phoebe had given up on trying to get the girl to speak after the first day. When Phoebe would return to the infirmary after spending a few hours in Apollo's archery range, she would be greeted with an empty plate, but still a completely mute Zoe. She almost began to think that Zoe had lost her voice during the quest.  
Instead she was greeted with something that completely broke away from her monotonous routine. Firstly, Percy was awake, which was good news. He was seated on the bed, Zoe seated next to him. They seemed to be sitting far too close to each other in Phoebe's eyes.  
Melancholy played on Percy's sea green orbs, "So... Annabeth is... Dead?"  
Zoe nodded grimly.  
Percy's expression turned sour, he seemed to be holding back tears.  
"Th- This is all my fault!"  
Zoe placed a comforting arm on his shoulder. "No, it isn't."  
At least Phoebe's doubts on whether Zoe lost her voice was cleared.  
Percy shook his head violently, "Yes, it is! Annabeth- she was supposed to be alive!"  
Zoe looked at him with sad eyes.  
"She was my mortal anchor."  
Percy's voice was barely above a whisper, but Phoebe could hear through her impeccable hearing honed through her over four hundred years of being a hunter.  
Zoe gained a confused expression, "Mortal anchor?"  
Percy nodded, "The curse. You need something to tie you to the realm of the living, or else the Styx will consume you. Anna- Annabeth was mine."  
What curse was the boy talking about? Surely the titan's curse mentioned in the prophecy hadn't been the one. The gray streak in both their hairs proved to Phoebe that they had to bear the burden of the sky, at least at some point during their quest.  
Zoe gained a dark look on her face, almost bordering on envy, but that couldn't have been right. Phoebe settled with her expression eluding to anger of some sort.  
"And you think that because you saved the lives of Bianca and myself, that you condemned Annabeth to death."  
Zoe's words weren't a question. Her eyes were narrowed at the boy.  
Phoebe's eyes narrowed at Zoe's words, something didn't click right to her. She barely even noticed that Zoe had still been speaking in modern English.  
"Not that I regret changing the past and saving your lives! It's just that-"  
Phoebe cut the boy off by clearing her throat.  
The huntress had been caught off-guard by the boy's words. Did he say, changing the past?  
"Phoebe!"  
Percy's voice was squeaky, he was flushed a deep red and pushed himself away from the form of the seated Zoe beside him, straightening his gown.  
Phoebe narrowed her eyes at him.  
"What did you mean by changing the past?"  
She was straight at the point.  
Percy's eyes darted nervously to Zoe's, who nodded at him mutely, after a brief look of hesitation.  
The boy took in a lungful of air.  
"Well, you see-"

________________________________________  
Chapter 39: Olympus  
________________________________________  
"So, let me get this straight. What you're telling me is –"  
Phoebe was then cut off by the sound of her lieutenant's sigh.  
"Yes Phoebe, Percy and I have traveled back in time." Zoe's voice clearly implied that the girl was beginning to get frustrated.  
"And–"  
Zoe interrupted her once more, "Yes, in the previous timeline, Bianca and I had died."  
Phoebe nodded hesitantly, letting the truth of her lieutenant's words sink in. What she was having trouble understanding was what the other hunter was implying.  
"That means Percy saved both of your lives?"  
Zoe briefly glanced towards the direction of the son of Poseidon before nodding.  
"I see..." Phoebe said reluctantly. The girl did not want to admit that she didn't fully trust the explanation. While she fully trusted Zoe's words, the concept of time travel seemed – out of the realm of reality. And she'd lived hundreds of years dealing with myths and tales, but traveling back in time was another matter altogether.  
"Who else knows?" she asked.  
Zoe shook her head, "Nobody."  
Percy paled considerably, before raising his hand to speak. "Oh, hmm. You see about that…"  
He was sheepishly rubbing the back of his head.  
Zoe narrowed her eyes at the boy. "What did you do, Perseus?"  
Phoebe shuddered. Zoe's harden expression was still unnerving despite now that Zoe spoke modern English.  
"Umm… I might've told La-Lady Artemis. She knows."  
Zoe and Phoebe's eyes both widened.  
"Milady knows?"  
Percy nodded slowly. "She knows that I am from the future, but I didn't mention anything about you. She found out before I knew you had traveled back too. Ya know, at Westover."  
Zoe hummed. "I see…"  
The two had seemed to have completely forgotten that Phoebe was in the room with them; both trapped in their own bubble of thoughts.  
Zoe finally spoke, "And just when – were you planning on telling me this little piece of information?"  
Percy nervously chuckled: "I dunno…" Phoebe had the urge to face palm, but resisted the urge.  
Zoe glared at the son of Poseidon. "Do you have any more… information that you have neglected to inform me?" Zoe's voice almost sounded sarcastic, which was unheard of from Zoe Nightshade – the badass and rigid lieutenant of the Hunters of Artemis.  
Percy gained a contemplative look, "Hmm..." he said, before making eye contact with Phoebe. "I might've been turned into a girl during the time I spent with the hunters." Percy had a crimson flush adorning his features.  
Zoe rolled her eyes. "At least it wasn't some fuzzy wuzzy animal."  
Percy and Phoebe looked at her as if she'd just admitted to being a Justin Bieber fan.   
"What!?"  
Percy shook his head. "Did you – Zoe Nightshade, just say 'fuzzy wuzzy?'"  
The hunter blushed, before hardening her expression. "Have a problem with that?" she threatened. The threat might've been much more menacing if she wasn't the color of an apple; and not even the golden kind either.  
Phoebe was simply weirded out by the scene. Time travelers or not, Zoe's actions were simply… not hers. And those two were far too close for her own liking. She feared to think if the impossible would happen…  
No, something like that would never happen. It couldn't happen.  
Zoe Nightshade would never fall for a man; even if that man was Perseus freaking Jackson.  
But before Phoebe could put her own insight in the discussion, the conversation was cut off by a bright silver flash that illuminated the somewhat dark room.  
"Lady Artemis!" Phoebe quickly bowed, while Zoe tried her best to discreetly scoot away from the son of Poseidon. Unfortunately, Artemis was unobvious to the tinted cheeks of one certain hunter.  
"Percy. I am pleased to see you have awoken," Artemis stated. The moon goddess made her way over and did something that shocked everyone in the room.  
Artemis gave the boy a hug!  
Phoebe almost fainted from the shock.  
"Lad-Lady Artemis? Umm," Percy stammered, before the goddess untangled herself from the boy.  
"Mention that to anyone outside this room, and prepare to live the rest of your life with breasts."  
Percy paled considerably and zipped his mouth shut.  
Then, he sighed. "Lady Artemis. There is something you need to know," he said, glancing nervously at both Zoe and Phoebe. Artemis nodded. "Well, first off, Zoe is from the past as well… and now Phoebe also knows about us being from the future… Well Zoe is supposed to be dead, so I guess it isn't the future for her – just the future for me, but it will no longer be the future for me as well because I've messed up the timeline so much, and now that Annabeth is dead and Bianca is alive, and –"  
It was at that point, that Artemis finally cut him off, "Breathe, Percy. You're rambling."  
Percy breathed.  
Artemis took the time to turn to her huntress, Phoebe first. "Do not speak about this. We have no idea what this knowledge will entail, because so much has already changed."  
Phoebe nodded silently.  
"And, my Zoe Nightshade, while I am quite saddened at the loss of a young maiden in the form of Athena's daughter, I am glad you are still alive." Zoe softly smiled at her mistress.  
Artemis faced them all. "Let us take a stroll around Olympus. I am sure you all are in need of some fresh air. There is much to discuss."  
________________________________________  
Phoebe could never get over how truly magnificent the architecture of Olympus was. From the intricate marble walkways, to the meticulously planted orchids that littered the lush green grass, Olympus was simply beautiful.  
As Artemis led them through the gardens, she explained to them how Thalia had joined the hunters. Zoe and Phoebe appeared rather shocked at the news, but Percy looked impassive. Phoebe figured that that little tidbit of information was not news to the young time traveler.  
"She is also acting as second in command –" Artemis glanced at her lieutenant, who was standing somewhat closer to Percy than she appreciated, " –temporarily."  
Phoebe looked enraged, that she had been demoted. "But –"  
"No arguments, Phoebe. You will still be lead tracker," Artemis stated, ending any further argument. Phoebe nodded silently, by muttered an offensive retort that the goddess chose to ignore.  
"Now to the matter of Bianca Di Angelo." Percy and Zoe perked up at the mention of the daughter of Hades.  
"Bianca had decided to step down from position of hunter." Her words came as a shock to all three present.  
"What? Why?" Artemis glared at Percy, shutting him up.  
"She is the daughter of Hades." Phoebe looked shocked, but both Percy and Zoe knew of this.  
"Thalia had prevented the prophecy from being fulfilled during the solstice and Percy still had two years remaining. Zeus had decided that he could delay the inevitable. He hopes to delay the great prophecy by another year so we may prepare."  
Percy looked skeptical at what he was being told, and so did Zoe. "But isn't it bad to try mess with prophecies?"  
Artemis gave Percy a pointed look, and gestured towards Zoe Nightshade.  
"Oh… yeah." Percy said, realizing the irony in his earlier statement.  
"As I was saying. The fates had been the one to order the change. They said that because Luke Castellan is gone, Kronos will have to find a new host."  
The three nodded in understanding.  
"But-" Artemis continued. "She will still be accompanying us in our training and travels for the major duration of the year. She will then spend her summers at Camp Half Blood…"  
"Okay…" Percy nodded.  
"One last thing." Artemis glanced at Zoe, and then at Percy.  
"Percy, you are to remain with the hunters." Percy paled. Artemis grew a devious smirk. "Expect some training."  
Percy shook nervously.  
"But it shouldn't be as intense as when we were going to San Francisco." Percy breathed silently in relief but then Artemis finished her last sentence: "But don't expect the hunters to go easy on you"  
And he blanched again.  
Phoebe found her part, and busted out in laughter. Oh, she was going to have some fun with the son of Poseidon!  
Wait. That didn't sound right.  
Zoe comforted Percy with a soft pat on the shoulder to hopefully ease some of his anxiety.  
"Look on the plus side! You will be able to spend some extra time with Thalia, Bianca and myself," she comforted in a teasing tone.  
Percy smiled at Zoe. Zoe smiled back at him.  
Phoebe almost missed Artemis' soft smile at the interaction between the two.  
The hunter filed that information away for later.  
The group's little amble come to an end. They were at the elevator which would lead them out of Olympus.  
"Perseus," Artemis said, gaining Percy's attention. She tossed Percy his watch, pen and Minotaur horn.  
"Don't bother packing. Your camp clothes won't survive for longer than a week."  
Artemis then handed Percy a square piece of folded paper. The boy unfolded the paper, revealing a map of the United States.  
"The hunters will be waiting for you where we first met." And with that, Artemis teleported away bringing her hunters with her, leaving a lone demigod armed with nothing but a bronze sword, a watch that could turn into a shield, a horn and the clothes on his back.  
Percy Jackson, was going to have a long night.

________________________________________  
Chapter 40: Cookies  
________________________________________  
Percy tried not to shiver, as the frigid cold from a winter night was blasted away from his freezing form.  
'Two thousand err- One thousand nine hundred miles…'  
Walking through the spinning doors that guarded the apartment building's lobby from the outside elements, Percy waved at the familiar attendant that stood guard behind his desk. He was a young man of about twenty, sandy blonde hair, pale blue eyes, mortal. Nothing truly remarkable about the man. The man waved back at Percy.  
'Three thousand kilometers.'  
Taking the stairs two steps at a time, Percy glided up the eight set of stairs with unbelievable swiftness, which may or may not have been due to him not wearing his bracelets at that moment.  
'And I bet she'd expect me to be quick about it too.'  
On the map Artemis had given to Percy, clear instructions had told him to meet her and her hunters at Keystone, Colorado. She would be expecting him to take the journey on foot…  
Although how much time she was giving was not specified, Percy thought it best that he should assume he didn't have long.  
But suffice what Artemis wanted, the son of Poseidon had to visit his mother and let her know he was well, before having to embark on yet another adventure. Besides, he had a gut feeling telling him that his mother had a batch of her blue cookies ready.  
It didn't take him long to navigate through the halls and find his mother's apartment, despite the fact had been two whole years since he had last seen this specific apartment. In all honesty, the place she had taken up with her future husband, Paul Blofis had been a much nicer place, but the small apartment Sally liven in presently had a nice homey feeling as she was the only one living in it with an extra guest bedroom.  
As he nervously approached the thick spruce door, wondering if he had remembered the correct one, the warm aroma of his mother's mouth-watering chocolate chip cookies filled the air.  
He stood in front of the door labeled 4B, pausing to take in the wafting smells. Yep. That confirmed it. He knew to always trust his gut.  
He knocked with purpose, before tapping his foot anxiously for an answer.  
"One moment!" Percy smiled as he heard his mother's sweet voice.  
He missed his mother. While he had technically spoken to her before the quest, the conversation was rather short and the only true conversation he had had with his mother hadn't been since before the titan war.  
The apartment door swung open, and Sally Jackson's blue eyes lit up when she saw her son's weathered, but healthy face.  
"Percy!" Before he could react, the son of the sea god was wrapped into a spine crushing hug. He would deny it and take it to the grave, but he loved his mother's hugs.  
"Mom… Can't – breathe," the boy managed to choke out.  
His mother untangled her arms from the boy, before pulling him into the household.  
"Oh Percy! You're back. I was expecting you to not come back until next weekend! How was the rescue? I'm sure you three did absolutely great!" she said excitingly, before seating him down on their couch, before hurrying to the kitchen.  
"You stay right there! You and your timing Percy, I swear. It's almost as if you can smell these things from miles away!" she yelled from the kitchen before bringing in a warm tray of steaming hot blue cookies. The chocolate was even still melted.  
"Maybe I should make a batch every time I need you home," she teased, before setting the tray on the coffee table. "Now tell me, what happened?"  
"Well, you see… the rescue went fine. The two of them are safe. But the thing is… their dad is Hades," Percy started.  
Sally pursed her lips, but nodded for her son to continue.  
"Well, actually we found out during the quest. You see Art-Athena got captured, and we got sent on this quest to go rescue her –"  
Percy cursed himself for his slip up. He wasn't quite prepared to face his mother about the prospects of time travel.  
Percy gave his mother a quick summary about the quest. From what had happened at Washington DC, to the battle atop Mt. Tam. Unconsciously, he left out the parts of time traveling.  
"– Annabeth… She – She didn't make it."  
Sally held her son close, as Percy began to come to full terms by the events of what had happened. He had sacrificed Annabeth's life for Zoe and Bianca's. After minutes of silence between the two, he finally sobered.  
"I was supposed to be the child of the prophecy. But because of the change in fate, Luke – who was meant to host Kronos was killed. The fates commanded that my aging was to be paused so that Bianca – one of the demigods we saved at Westover, is to be the child of the prophecy. Also, Thalia decided to join the hunt to delay the war, but the same time, I have to stay with the hunt too."  
Sally's eyes widened in surprise.  
"Lady Artemis has deman – requested, that I spend the next few years training with her hunters," he explained.  
Sally closed her eyes, comprehending all the things her son had told her. Only half of it made sense. Percy's rushed explanations were loose and didn't make sense, but she absorbed them. While she was heartbroken that Annabeth had died – she was quite fond of the girl – she was definitely glad that her son wasn't some kind of chosen one. It might have been selfish of her, but from what she knew of the myths, heroes did not usually get happy endings.  
"Lady Artemis – She isn't known for liking the company of men," Sally said, rather confused. "How did she agree to take you into the hunt?"  
Percy took a bite into the cookie he was holding; savoring the flavor, before shrugging. "I think Artemis has come to… tolerate me, I guess. It's her hunters, that I will have to worry about.  
Percy sighed.  
"Well, at least I will have Zoe, Thalia and Bianca with me. They aren't too bad," he spoke, shrugging.  
Sally smiled, understandably. At the very least, her son wouldn't be entirely alone. Although she was quite unsure of her son's long-term reaction to his best friend's death. While her son did not want admit it, she felt that he was more attached to Annabeth Chase then he had ever let on to her.  
"Who is Zoe, and didn't Bianca quit the hunt?"  
Percy took the time to chew his cookie before answering with an empty mouth.  
"Zoe is the lieutenant of Artemis' hunters. She was with us in the quest. While she was hesitant at first, I think we're on fair terms now. As for Bianca, the gods decided it was best for her to continue her training with Artemis anyway. At least, until Summer."  
Percy's mom sighed, before getting up from their seat. "Alright, Percy, as long as you're safe."  
Percy bounced up, before hugging her tightly. His eyes were wet. "I will mom. I… I should be going. The hunt will be waiting."  
He grabbed as many cookies as his hands would allow him too, before getting one of his spare coats from the hallway closet. His mother rolled her eyes at him.  
"Where would you be meeting Lady Artemis and her hunters? I can give you a ride."  
Percy winked at her. "They'll be no need. I can go on food," he said before opening the door. "I meeting them in Colorado. I'll send home postcards. Thanks mom!"  
Before she could reply, the son of Poseidon took off, running down the hall.  
Sally was left in her lone apartment, wondering how her son was supposed to travel half way across the country.  
She closed the door and went to the window, looking out frigid streets before seeing her son jog down the sidewalk on an adventure that could take him almost anywhere. Anywhere, but home.  
"Just be safe, Percy," she whispered to no one in particular. "That's my Christmas wish. For him to just be safe."  
She sighed, before staring back at the living room, where the Jackson family tree laid barren. It had been a tradition since he was small that they would decorate it together. Now it was the day before Christmas Eve, and her son had finally left the nest.  
'Just be safe, Percy.' She thought before leaving the window. She had a date in one hour.

________________________________________  
Chapter 41: Run  
________________________________________  
Percy relished the feeling of the wind rushing past his face.  
He had no idea how he managed to survive in the past, when he wasn't even a fraction of how fast he was. Admittedly, Percy couldn't exactly see where he was going, his vision only revealed to him a blur of green and brown, but all he cared about was going faster.  
If his estimations were correct, then it would take him a week to make the one thousand eight hundred and forty mile run to Keystone, Colorado. And already, he was near four days into his long cross-country venture.  
He pretty much only ran the entire day. His routine was rather simple; seven hours of rest, an hour for all his meals, and an hour's worth of rest, separated into four intervals of fifteen minutes. He kept his weights on, so he probably would have already reached If he had removed them, but he wasn't too keen on arriving too soon.  
Percy didn't know exactly how, but he seemed to be able to tell the time, even when he had no vision of a clock, watch, or even the sun. He just knew the time. He suspected that Artemis' blessing might have had something to do about that.  
Percy began to slow down, readying for rest. He had been running for already a few hours. It was time for some rest.  
Grinding to a halt, he took a look around him, looking for a good place to make camp. He finally noticed a clearing in the forest that seemed to be perfect for a short stop.  
The son of Poseidon heaped onto the grassy floor and lied down spread eagle after he plopped his bag on the ground. Honestly, he was getting quite bored of just running for the past four days. At least he was already over half way through. He'd just have to keep up the monotony for two more days, after the day was over.  
The boy pulled out a bottle of water from his pack and sighed in relief when he realized that he still had some water. He would have to refill the next stream he would come across.  
Percy heard a noise. First, the snapping of a branch, and then the sound of something falling off a tree and hitting the forest ground.  
He was alert at once, he jumped to his feet and had his pen blade uncapped.  
"Who's there?"  
He realized that it was probably a stupid thing to ask a potential monster, but he paid that no mind.  
Percy made his way out towards the outgrowth he had heard the disturbance from and pushed the foliage aside to stop it from obscuring his vision.  
"Bianca?"  
The girl was on the floor, probably, as he guessed, she had fallen off the tree as evidenced be the broken tree branch beside her.  
"Ow..."  
The daughter of Hades got off the ground rubbing her backside.  
"Dammit Bianca!"  
Zoe landed beside her without a noise.  
"I knew she would give us away."  
Thalia landed behind him.  
"You owe me ten drachmas each Sparky, Angelo."  
And then dropped Phoebe.  
Percy stared blankly at the four girls before him.  
"Let me guess, Artemis sent you four after me to make sure I don't get myself killed?"  
Zoe laughed before nodding. Her dark hair bounced as she nodded and her volcanic eyes shone with mirth.  
"I bet that Bianca would give us away." Phoebe seemed to be proud of that claim, while the daughter of Hades glared at her. "Oh, nothing personal, you just have the least experience."  
"Doesn't Thalia have the least –"  
"I've been on the run for half my life. I think I know how to hide," Thalia explained. "And I bet that Zoe would give us away, I honestly expected her to jump out and help you when that hellhound snuck up on you, you honestly need to pay more attention, Kelp Head." The lieutenant turned pink. She did not deny the claim.  
"I bet that Phoebe would jump out and strangle you when you almost got lost just outside New York." Bianca grinned at Percy.  
The boy rolled his eyes.  
"Glad to see my life is worth betting on," Percy spoke dryly.  
"If it's any consolation, I abstained from placing bets." Zoe smiled at Percy, which the boy returned.  
Phoebe rolled her eyes, "Well, now that you know we're here, might as well stay until we reach the camp."  
Percy glanced at his mental watch. They had probably around ten minutes before they had to continue the run.  
Percy made his way back to the clearing and gestured for the girls to follow. They did.  
He plopped down back where he originally lay, but sat upright instead.  
"Since when have you guys been following me?"  
Zoe blushed, "Since you left your mother's place. She is a nice and strong woman. That must be where you get your genes from." Phoebe almost choked at the veiled compliment.  
Thalia and Bianca grinned. "She makes the best cookies."  
"Why are they blue though?" Bianca asked curiously.  
Percy was confused as the how the two of them had tasted his mother's cookies.  
Phoebe saw his confusion, and explained: "Thalia convinced us to meet her before we left Manhattan. I have to agree with Zoe though, she is most definitely a great woman. A pity in fact..."  
Percy grinned.  
"He takes after using father then."  
Bianca laughed at Thalia's comment.  
Percy took his first good look at the daughter of Zeus since she joined the hunters... Again.  
She pretty much looked exactly as she did in the previous timeline, so Percy forgave himself for not noticing anything different in the girl. She had her infamous 'Death to Barbie' tee-shirt on and had a silver parka over it.  
But on the same grounds of things being different, Thalia seemed to be seated unnaturally close to Bianca, their arms were touching, but neither seemed to mind. He shrugged off the detail, figuring that it was probably nothing.  
He took another gander at the time. Two more minutes, and they would have to leave.  
"We should probably leave in some time, if we are to make it all the way to Keystone."  
Phoebe rolled her eyes.  
"You say all the way, but we've covered over a thousand miles. Five minutes won't make a difference"  
Zoe decided to speak up, "Percy is right. We mustn't keep Lady Artemis waiting."  
The boy nodded, glad that Zoe understood where he was coming from.  
He got on his feet.  
"Two minutes? Then we leave?"  
The four girls nodded.  
"What do you think Artemis has planned?"  
Zoe shrugged at Percy's question.  
"We will have to find out. Usually we set up camp and stay at one campsite for a fortnight. When we are static, Artemis assigns one hunter who is in charge of the hunting for food per day and then leaves up to do whatever we want for a few hours. We have three hours of training at the very least."  
Percy sighed in relief. Three hours, he could handle. He figured that the extreme training he had gone through was because they were short on time.  
"We should leave."  
He took off running towards east.  
"Wrong way, Percy!" Percy flushed in embarrassment as he turned right around and sprinted the correct way.  
Zoe caught up to him.  
Phoebe, Bianca and Thalia went ahead of them, leaving the two out of earshot.  
"Percy, how much has the timeline changed? Bianca and I are alive, and Thalia is now a part of the hunt. What else?"  
"Actually, Thalia was in the hunt in the original timeline too... After you... Died..."  
Percy trailed off at the end, grim expression on his face. He was clearly uncomfortable with discussing the death of the other girl. Zoe nodded.  
"What else?"  
"I was supposed to be the child of the Prophecy. It seems like Bianca is going to be the one now."  
Percy glanced forward at the thirteen-year-old girl. She had two years to prepare for the Titan war, and she had the be ready.  
Bianca walked almost hand in hand with Thalia, but not quite. They stood close to each other, but just barely enough to not be touching. Percy felt guilty for having the burden on his shoulder to be passed onto the younger girl. He knew what it felt like to have the responsibility of being the child of the prophecy, but he had hope.  
When he had fought Kronos, he had lost. The Titan Lord had defeated him and broken Zoe's blade. In some regard, he was glad to have lost. If not, he would have never gone to the past. Zoe and Bianca would have been dead... But he did have one regret.  
Annabeth Chase, his best friend, his crush had perished because of him, but for some reason he couldn't bring himself to feel sad. As much as he tried, it was almost as though his body refused to cry because of the death of Annabeth.  
In hindsight, he had felt greater pain when Zoe had died.  
Zoe...  
Percy had no idea what to do with the girl.  
She was infuriatingly trapped in his thoughts. He couldn't get his mind off the girl.  
Especially when he could smell her pine scented hair right next to him.  
"Percy?"  
The boy blinked in surprise. He had zoned out.  
"You spaced out. Are you okay?"  
Percy grinned at her, averting his eyes from the path in front of him.  
"I'm fine."  
He ran into a tree.  
"Not anymore"  
Zoe sighed.  
"What will you do without me?"  
She crouched down and helped the boy back to his feet.  
"Eyes on the road- err path."  
She blushed at her goof.  
Percy grinned at her and took off running, trying to catch up with the rest of the group.

________________________________________  
Chapter 42: Fate  
________________________________________  
The group began to slow down to a medium paced jog. They were just outside Keystone. Now all they needed to do was locate Lady Artemis and the hunters.  
Bianca traveled in the middle of the group, whilst Phoebe scouted up ahead. Percy and Zoe hung back – whispering to each other while covering the rear.  
The daughter of Hades paid no mind to their hushed discussion. She was too busy with her own thoughts, of the daughter of Zeus who was jogging besides her.  
The younger girl began to feel a crimson flush rise to her cheeks. She had no idea what was going on with herself. The last time she checked, she was perfectly sane. That is – until the end of the quest – no thought had crossed her mind regarding her tomboyish cousin.  
It had literally appeared out of nowhere, and all of a sudden…  
She didn't quite believe it herself at first.  
She couldn't have a crush of Thalia, could she? She had been wrestling with the thought for a while now.  
She was crushing on Thalia Grace! Oh gods. Can demigods be with each other? Her mind went back to how Percy and Annabeth might've had been a thing. Maybe there was no rule against it? Maybe godly blood didn't count.  
She didn't really care that Thalia was a girl. She knew that she should, but she didn't.  
Bianca's faced burned a deep crimson hue, as she tossed out the blasphemy that pounded in her head. Luckily, no one paid mind. As her motions became automatic, her thoughts began to wander. They began to drift back to Mount Tam.  
The place where the feelings had started...  
________________________________________  
They were alone.  
Thalia's leg was broken, but she seemed to be relatively unharmed beside that. Bianca was grateful that she had decided to stay back. The daughter of Hades was nearly unscratched, all that marred her skin were fading scars.  
Thalia leaned heavily on Bianca, but she didn't mind. The two demigods slowly ambled down the peak. Their progress was anything but quick.  
They eventually made it to the garden. The Hesperides were playing on their harps, a truly beautiful melody. The melancholic tune almost seemed to be the funeral knell for the death of Annabeth Chase.  
Bianca cleared her thoughts from her deceased friend. It would be pointless mourning her, when they had more important matters to attend to.  
They needed to get to Olympus.  
It had taken the better part of an hour, but they finally reached the shore.  
Lady Athena had promised them a mode of transport, in the form of a favor from Lord Poseidon. Bianca was perplexed. She was led to believe that the wisdom goddess, and the god of the seas were bitter foes. Why would Lord Poseidon agree to a favor from his arch enemy? To top it all off, he would have to take two children of his brothers, whom he so despised.  
To say that Bianca was weary, would be putting it far too lightly.  
And by the look of things, the two would probably have to just stay by the bay until the end of the meeting, and Lady Athena, or Lady Artemis were to come and take them home.  
She was, however, proven wrong when she heard the bubbly neigh of a hippocampus. Of course, she had never seen one earlier, but she knew what she was looking at.  
The creature seemed to resemble a horse for the most part, but certain features of a fish could be made out. The entire lower half of the horse-like creature was that of silvery fish with rainbow like tail fins.  
Bianca was admittedly nervous. She had had no idea on what to expect. Lord Poseidon would easily will the seas to simply swallow them whole. They were, after all, children of his brothers.  
Yet, she had a feeling in her gut that said that she would be fine.  
Bianca hesitantly took the first step towards the sea foam creating creature. She felt cold fingers slip into her palm. They gave her a reassuring squeeze.  
"Let's go."  
Thalia softly smiled at the her.  
Thalia was clearly in much pain, so the daughter of Hades decided to hurry up.  
It took some time, but the two were saddled firmly on the horse part of the animal.  
With a loud neigh, the horse took off at blinding speeds.  
If someone were to ask the girl about how fast they were going, she would probably reply with "Very".  
Thalia huddled up closer to her. Thalia was snuggled behind her, and held on tightly to her waist. The girl's head rested on Bianca's shoulder blade. She felt so warm, in the freezing sea.  
Bianca flushed a deep crimson when she felt two nubs brush against her back.  
She suddenly grew hypersensitive to the curves that were pressed against her. Meanwhile, the older girl didn't seem to sense her discomfort.  
In fact, Bianca could hear soft snores resonating off her spine. Oh gods. But before she could take any action, Bianca felt her own eyelids grow heavy.  
The last thing the girl noticed before submitting to the sweet relief of sleep, was the hippocampus diving underwater, a protective bubble of air surrounding them, enabling the resting girls to breathe underwater, even if it was just for a night.  
________________________________________  
When Bianca blinked her eyes open groggily, she was bet with the striking blue eyes of Thalia Grace.  
Bianca 'eeped' and bounced to her feet.  
She looked around.  
Olympus.  
The girl couldn't describe with words how beautiful the place was, and so she wasn't going to bother. Thalia leaned on a marble pillar and pulled the daughter of Hades up.  
"Let's go. The gods must be waiting."  
Thalia proceeded to lean back on Bianca and the two made their way to the council room. Bianca pushed the large doors open.  
"Heroes," Artemis called.  
The goddess slid down from her throne and as she approached them turned to human size, a young auburn-haired girl, perfectly at ease in the midst of the giant Olympians. She strolled toward them, her silver robes shimmering. There was no emotion in her face. She seemed to walk in a column of moonlight.  
"The Council has been informed of your deeds," Artemis told the two. "They know that Mount Othrys is rising in the West. They know of Atlas's attempt for freedom, and the gathering armies of Kronos. We have voted to act."  
There was some mumbling and shuffling among the gods, as if they weren't all happy with this plan, but nobody protested.  
"At my Lord Zeus's command," Artemis said, "my brother Apollo and I shall hunt the most powerful monsters, seeking to strike them down before they can join the Titans' cause. Lady Athena shall personally check on the other Titans to make sure they do not escape their various prisons. Lord Poseidon has been given permission to unleash his full fury on the cruise ship Princess Andromeda and send it to the bottom of the sea. And as for you, my heroes…"  
She turned to face the other immortals. "These half-bloods have done Olympus a great service. Would any here deny that?"  
She looked around at the assembled gods, meeting their faces individually. Zeus in his dark pin-striped suit, his black beard neatly trimmed, and his eyes sparking with energy. Next to him sat a beautiful woman with silver hair braided over one shoulder and a dress that shimmered colors like peacock feathers. The Lady Hera.  
On Zeus's right, Percy's father, Poseidon, the God who had aided the two of them, when he had no reason to. The god smiled at the two of them. Next to him, a huge lump of a man with a leg in a steel brace, a misshapen head, and a wild brown beard, fire flickering through his whiskers. The Lord of the Forges, Hephaestus.  
Hermes was wearing a business suit, checking messages on his caduceus mobile phone. Apollo leaned back in his golden throne with his shades on. He had strange earpieces on, so Bianca wasn't sure he was even listening. Dionysus looked bored, twirling a grape vine between his fingers. And Ares, well, he sat on his chrome-and-leather throne, while he sharpened a knife.  
On the ladies' side of the throne room, a dark-haired goddess in green robes sat next to Hera on a throne woven of apple-tree branches. Demeter, Goddess of the Harvest. Next to her sat a beautiful gray-eyed woman in an elegant white dress, Lady Athena. Then there was Aphrodite.  
Finally, on a chair that could barely be called a throne was Hades. Her father. He was very tall, imposing and a very muscular god with albino white skin. His dark eyes shone like frozen tar. He had medium length black hair which fell onto his forehead.  
Bianca could almost imagine an older Nico to look quite similar to the god before her.  
All the Olympians in one place. So much power in this room it was a miracle the whole palace didn't blow apart.  
"I gotta say"—Apollo broke the silence—"these kids did okay." He cleared his throat and began to recite: "Heroes win laurels—"  
"Um, yes, first class," Hermes interrupted, like he was anxious to avoid Apollo's poetry. "All in favor of not disintegrating them?"  
A few tentative hands went up—Demeter, Aphrodite.  
"Wait just a minute," Ares growled. He pointed at Thalia and Bianca. "These two are dangerous. It'd be much safer, while we've got them here—"  
"Ares," Poseidon interrupted, "I have mentioned this when Percy was brought in, they are worthy heroes. Hades spoke up, "We will not blast my daughter to bits."  
Stifled gasps echo throughout the room, but no one dared to open their mouth.  
"Nor my daughter," Zeus grumbled. "She has done well."  
Thalia blushed. She studied the floor. Bianca knew how she felt. She'd hardly ever seen to her father, much less gotten a compliment.  
Time suddenly seemed to slow down to a crawl. There was a shimmer in the middle of the throne room.  
"Lady Fates!"  
Bianca gaped as she saw all twelve Olympians, plus Hades and Hestia bow before the three wrinkly old women that appeared before them.  
"There will be no more death today," the first spoke.  
"Bianca Di Angelo will live. She will be the one to save Olympus, or bring its fall," spoke the second.  
Bianca was shocked. What was going on? She didn't want to become kind of chosen one. There had to have been a mistake.  
"The threads of fate are twisted. Bianca Di Angelo and Zoe were to be dead. Annabeth Chase and Luke Castellan were to be alive," the third continued.  
Bianca noticed Lady Artemis pale considerably.  
"A life for a life. Two lives have been saved. Two lives have been taken."  
"Luke Castellan is dead. The Titan Lord has been delayed. You have one extra year to train. Put it to good use."  
Time slowed again. In as sudden as they had appeared, the fates had disappeared.  
________________________________________  
Chapter 43: Hades  
________________________________________  
While they strolled through the outskirts of Keystone, the son of Poseidon was lost in deep conversation with the lieutenant of the hunters. They spoke of sweet nothings – ranging from her life in the hunt to how amazing his mother was.  
It wasn't of an eventful conversation, but Percy still learned a great deal of things about the girl that he would've never known otherwise.  
Her favorite color was violet and that she preferred hunting rabbits over deer. Her favorite star in the skies was Meissa and that she had this irrational fear of snakes. Ophidiophobia, if he could recall correctly.  
By the time he decided to pay more attention to his surroundings, they were already in the sleepy eastern suburbs of the town. Phoebe stalked ahead with Thalia and Bianca behind her, trying to keep up with the uncomfortable stride. The latter of the two girls of whom seemed in deep thought also, was sneaking in glances at the girl beside her.  
He could've been wrong, but he suspected that he saw a blush or two from the daughter of Hades' cheeks.  
Speaking of Hades…  
The night skies around them seemed to darkened, and the street lamps blinked; causing the group to come to a complete halt.  
The air before the group began to shimmer, and a rather cold presence overtook them. Phoebe, Thalia and Zoe took out their bows without hesitation, but the  
The skies around them seemed to darken, causing the group to come to a complete halt.  
The air before Percy shimmered, before a flash re-illuminated the skies for only a moment.  
A tall, muscled man stood before them, his dark black hair obscuring one of his dark eyes, which seemed to have a certain glint to it, but they didn't seem to be malicious. His pale skin looked like they hadn't seen the light of day in millenniums. He wore a long, black trench coat, giving him a mysterious vibe. A black fedora completed the look.  
"Father!"  
Bianca's outburst broke Percy away from his thoughts.  
"Lord Hades." Zoe and Phoebe bowed.  
"Uncle." Percy and Thalia bowed.  
Hades walked up to his daughter and wrapped his arms around her. Percy couldn't help but be shocked. He didn't expect Hades to be one to show much affection.  
Bianca was surprised at first, but soon relaxed into the hug. Hades broke away after a few seconds of hugging his daughter.  
"I'm sorry I couldn't speak to you after the council meeting. I ah- had to convince my brother –" He coughed into his hand something that suspiciously sounded like 'Zeus', "– to not kill you."  
Bianca smiled, "That's fine father."  
Hades waved his hand in a motion of dismissal.  
"You will be fine child." Bianca looked rather confused to how to react to the comment, but luckily Phoebe stepped in.  
"Uh, I mean no disrespect Lord Hades, but why are you here?"  
The god turned to the huntress.  
"I was getting to that hunter."  
Hades faced Bianca again, "I have taken Nico to the underworld."  
Bianca's eyes widened.  
"After only moments after I claimed him, he was already labeled an outcast in the camp. Without you or Percy there to guide him, I fear it may not be in his best health to keep him there," Hades told. "I have decided to take him to the underworld…. With me."  
Zoe spoke up for the first time since the god appeared, "But Lord Hades, what about Lady Persephone and the Ancient Laws."  
Hades waved his arm in dismissal, "Persephone can be won over. And as you may know Huntress, the ones who developed the Ancient Laws were not the finest of lawyers. There are always loopholes. My brothers have skidded the line before..." he eyed Thalia and Percy, but then looked back. "But I will not blame my nephew and niece. They are innocent as my children are. The laws state that Nico cannot live with me, but not my domain. I will see him taken care of."  
Percy nodded, but Zoe looked rather nervous at the words. But whatever she wanted to say, the death god did not take notice nor did she decide to voice her thoughts.  
"Now. For the main reason I am here…"  
The god walked up to Percy. His expression softened.  
"Thank you for saving my daughter Perseus."  
He then did something that shocked Percy more than when Hades hugged Bianca.  
The god hugged him. The god of the underworld hugged him!  
The god broke away reached into one of his pockets and pulled something out. The object was hidden inside his fist.  
"Call this a little token of my gratitude."  
The god un-clenched his fist to reveal a ring. The ring looked to be made of gold, the visage of an asphodel running around it. The ring was studded with small emeralds and sapphires. In the middle was a single bright red pearl.  
Percy almost chuckled, he remembered that Hades was the god of wealth as well.  
"The pearl is infused with the essence of my wife's roses. It works similarly to your father's pearls, but instead of bringing the user to the sea, it takes the user to the underworld and back. Each pearl can be used for on to and fro journey and it transports everyone in contact with the person wearing the ring. Just imagine where you want to be and the pearl should glow. When it is used up, it will turn dark."  
Hades dropped the ring into Percy's open palm.  
"Put it on Perseus."  
The boy's smile quavered and slipped the ring into his left ring finger.  
The ring emitted a soft, sea green glow and the asphodel that wrapped around it turned to a sea green color.  
"Thank you, Lord Hades," he said.  
The words felt foreign in his mouth, but he figured that it would be better to give some respect to the god that just hugged him and gifted him with uninterrupted access to his domain.  
Another wave of dismissal.  
"Call me Hades, Perseus. I am no Olympian."  
Percy smirked, "Only if you call me Percy."  
Zoe and Phoebe stared at him like he grew another head for talking to Hades like that.  
The god only laughed. "Of course. Percy it is."  
He turned to his daughter, "Visit Nico when you can, he would like to meet you again. He misses you Bianca. You too Percy."  
The girl's eyes widened, and so did Percy's. He had meant to visit the son of Hades, but it had simply slipped his mind when he left his mother's house. He felt like slapping himself for his stupidity. He had even managed to keep Bianca alive so there wouldn't even be any conflict between the two of them again.  
Hades turned back to Percy, "I will seek you again Jackson, fulfill a few more favors for me and you get more uses on the pearl."  
The god disappeared in another flash of light.  
Thalia grumbled, "Your dads are so much cooler than mine."  
Bianca stuck her tongue out at her.  
Zoe walked back to her place beside Percy.  
"Well this is a first, I do say. A son of Poseidon gaining the favor of Lord Hades, not only that, but access to his domain. You truly are a special one Jackson."  
Percy grinned, "I know."  
Zoe punched him on the shoulder, "Boys." she rolled her eyes, while Percy laughed boisterously.

________________________________________  
Chapter 44: Pizza  
________________________________________  
Zoe was feeling positively nostalgic. It had seemed like an entire lifetime ago, that she had spent time with the rest of the hunters, and Artemis.  
Well… besides the few minutes in Maine, it technically had been a lifetime ago, since she had been with the hunt in the wilderness. The feeling sent a thrill up her spine.  
The thing was... it wasn't the only thing wiggling up her spine. Percy Jackson's presence would do that with her – them! Yes, he would do that with them. He was part of the hunt now, at the very least temporarily. It made her uneasy and yet excited.  
Zoe wanted to chastise herself for having such thoughts about the boy, but she couldn't bring herself up the task. The boy was just…-  
The inner musing was broken when her group stumbled upon what they were searching for. Well, if they had been actually in a hurry, they would've found camp an hour ago.  
The five of them wandered deep into the woods that surrounded them. Phoebe, their lead tracker was positive that Artemis would be there, and Zoe had no reason to doubt the highly meticulous daughter of Ares.  
(The huntress got most of her mannerisms from her late mother; a legacy of Athena.)  
Of course, the group followed the brunette into the green, only to be a met by what seemed like an empty campsite. The fire was put out, probably rather recently. The tents and training grounds were bare, and the infirmary and dining hall laid empty.  
Muddled footsteps crossed over each other, indicating a possible conflict, but Zoe couldn't be entirely sure.  
"They couldn't have gotten too far," Phoebe spoke up, "these tracks are near fresh."  
She was right, of course.  
"Split up?" The suggestion was offered by Percy.  
Phoebe nodded hesitantly at the boy before turning towards Thalia and Bianca. "You two, check the suburbs. Zoe and –" Phoebe paused before realizing she was giving orders. "Of course, I mean Zoe if you approve…"  
Zoe nodded quickly. "Yes, Percy, you and I will search the town and ski resorts. Phoebe, continue with the woods. We must make sure the hunt is not in danger. Do not, and I repeat, do not confront anything before contacting the rest of us. Iris message the others if there is any trouble."  
Zoe fished out a couple of drachmas from her sack, before handing each group a few each."  
"Meet back here, in an hour if your efforts bring up nothing."  
Phoebe nodded, taking her coins before leaping away, deeper into the forest.  
Percy smirked, "First team to find Artemis and the hunters wins"  
Thalia challenged his smirk with her own, "Oh, you're on Kelp Head!"  
"We'll see about that Pinecone Face."  
Thalia rolled her eyes, "That was lame, Fish Breath."  
Zoe rubbed her forehead in frustration; she had a feeling she knew where the argument was going.  
"Whatever you say, Sparky!"  
"Tuna Teeth!"  
"Pine Breath!"  
"Salmon Brains!"  
"Ozone-"  
Zoe clamped her hand over Percy's mouth, rolling her eyes. "Come on Jackson. You started this bet; we can't win if we are stuck here fighting."  
She dragged Percy away from his best friend. They were never going to change.  
The girl could practically feel Percy glaring at Thalia as Bianca dragged the other girl away.  
…  
Zoe stared blankly at the sight before her.  
Never before, in her long and partially immortal life had she witnessed a sight so… unique.  
And she'd seen some very unique sights.  
She made a point to Iris message Thalia and Phoebe before they approached Artemis and the hunters. Thalia grumbled about losing a bet, but she said nothing as soon as she stared at the scenery presented before her.  
Zoe turned to the son of Poseidon next. The boy seemed to be frozen in shock too.  
Zoe then finally trained her eyes to the scene. Artemis and the hunters weren't in any sort of trouble, and neither – it seemed – were they aware they were causing any either.  
The group of a dozen teenage girls with large hunting parkas were at 'Snake Riverbank Pizza' enjoying a couple of pizzas with what seemed to be sprinkled with bits of some kind of meat. (Later to be found to be chicken…)  
But that wasn't even the most bizarre part of the picture. What was truly out of place was that nearly the entirety of the male staff (and a few compatriots) had been fastened to the walls or even the ceiling using what looked like white duct tape.  
The girls laughed and converse with one another, seemingly completely oblivious to the multitude of bodies that just hung around them. The store was in complete shambles. An evident struggle had clearly taken place. Many of the pizzeria's tables and chairs were upturned and the store's wallpaper were torn in multiple places. Even a chair was hanging off the wall at one spot.  
A pair of female employees seemed to be cowering behind the counter, hoping that the manic silver party would just leave them alone.  
Zoe groaned.  
She dragged a frozen Percy along, and walked up to the store, before pushing through the doors even though the glass walls up front were all shattered. They silver clad teenagers shifted their attention to her.  
"Zoe! You made it!" one shouted.  
Artemis got up from her seat, and made her way towards the stunned duo.  
"My lieutenant!" Artemis said. "How long did it take for you to reveal yourself to Percy?"  
She had a playful glint in her silver eyes that Zoe didn't quite understand.  
"What?"  
Artemis waved the matter off. "Never mind, come, let us eat."  
The goddess found two new seats (that were covered in pieces of scattered glass) to their table, and brushed of the debris with her arm.  
The goddess dragged the two to the table and sat them down. "Sit."  
The two sat down.  
"Umm... M'lady, what happened over here?"  
Artemis chuckled; her eyes sparkling with enjoyment. "Oh, nothing much. The boys over here were just feeling… a little too touchy with us for our taste. Didn't have the heart at the time to turn them into jackalopes this time –" She smiled sadly, "– so the girls wanted to tape them to the walls instead. As you can see, there wasn't enough room, so some had to go on the roof."  
She gestured to the still, and groaning bodies hanging above them.  
"Have you learned your lesson yet, Tom?" the goddess of the moon looked up.  
The body handing directly over the hunter's table; a man that thin man in his mid-twenties groaned a retort, but whatever he said was obstructed by the huge amounts of tape that covered his mouth and eyes.  
Apparently, this was Tom. Poor Tom.  
Zoe rolled her eyes. She should have figured that something like that must have happened in her absence.  
"Did you have fun with Percy, Zoe?" The girl flushed a deep crimson.  
Why was Artemis doing this to her? Did she-? But there was no way!  
Artemis couldn't possibly know that Zoe Nightshade harbored feelings for Percy Jackson! They weren't even fully there, just the tiniest voice in her heart telling her that maybe Percy was worth more than the hunt. The same tiny voice that told her that maybe she should leave the hunt. She had escaped her fate of death, why tempt it with remaining in the hunt?  
Zoe of course, squashed those thoughts away before they had any actual effect on her behavior around Percy, she was probably already acting suspicious enough for Artemis to warrant the knowing look that she was giving her.  
It was then that Thalia and Bianca burst into the Pizzeria, Thalia dragging the younger girl behind her. They were hand in hand and Bianca was the color of a ripe tomato.  
Zoe narrowed her eyes a bit.  
Could Bianca-? No, she couldn't be sure. She wouldn't claim anything until she was sure that she knew that Bianca was gay, or at least that she felt some form of attraction towards the daughter of Zeus.  
"Hey Percy!"  
Rachel gave the boy a quick hug, the girl was absolutely tiny compared to the boy's rather tall frame.  
Zoe felt an ugly feeling boil it the pit of her gut.  
She had a good idea about what it wasn't but she decided that leaving her jealousy unacknowledged would make it go away.  
"How's life, Rachel?"  
Percy's grin was blinding, but Zoe ignored his pearly white teeth and stared above it, at the boy's devilishly handsome face. The most prominent of which was a fading scar on his left cheek. A souvenir from losing his curse after Annabeth and died. Oh yes, he told her about the curse and that Annabeth Chase was his mortal link. That was the first time she'd had to deal with the ugly feeling named envy.  
She memorized every single small detail that she could about his face, almost as though he would be forgotten if only, she looked away.  
She couldn't look away.  
She could feel herself get lost in his sparkling green eyes.  
Well shit...  
Artemis was going to kill her... That is, assuming that Poseidon didn't get to her first.  
This is what she gets for beginning to fall for a stupid, infuriating, annoying, sweet, kind, brave, loyal, strong, handsome…  
Argh!  
She hated Percy Jackson!  
Except... She didn't...

________________________________________  
Chapter 45: Rules  
________________________________________  
Percy blinked his eyes open.  
He was back in his room in his mother's apartment; in front of the same mirror, he was getting awfully annoyed with, finding himself in front every other night. He was in yet another dream or flash forward, in which he would have minimal to no over his actions.  
He was clad in yet another tuxedo. He wore a wore a different white buttoned-up shirt and a striped blue tie. The suit itself was a deep – almost black – purple. Well. He was dressed to be fancy tonight.  
"Knock, knock!" A sing song melodic voice rang out.  
Percy rolled his eyes. "You don't have to keep singing 'knock, knock' every time you knock the door, Zoe. You know you don't even have to knock."  
The girl poked her head from behind the pale maroon doorway; one coppery hand covering her eyes.  
"Then why do you have the door closed?" Zoe asked incredulously. Percy rolled his eyes again.  
"Because I like the privacy."  
"Well, here I am respecting that. Are ya decent, Perce?"  
Since when did Zoe Nightshade start calling him 'Perce?'  
Percy groaned at her antics. "I've been ready for almost half an hour. It was you who had to get ready."  
The girl flushed at being caught. "Well, come on Water Boy, they must be waiting!"  
Percy wondered who the girl was talking about. Of course, his dream-self didn't ask, and she grabbed him by the wrist before he could try force himself too. She dragged him into the hall.  
He had no idea where he was going, or who was waiting for them. His mother stopped them before they managed to escape through the front door.  
"Not going to say goodbye to your own mother, Percy?" The two skid to a halt, and turned stiffly.  
"Bye mom!"  
"Later, Sally!"  
The two were off, leaving the older woman chuckling at them. She made sure to call out to them before they were out of earshot, "I hope I shouldn't be expecting a grandchild quite yet!"  
Both Percy's, and Zoe's faces burned with embarrassment, but both squashed the emotion and their formal shoes as they made their way away from their apartment.  
They finally slowed down after a few blocks of running.  
"Remind me to never run in heels again," Zoe said, rubbing her ankles, "or a dress." Percy laughed at her discomfort. The girl retaliated with a punch to the shoulder.  
Percy took his first good look at the girl since the dream began.  
Zoe had her hair carefully braided, probably by his mother and she wore a slight brushing of makeup. Not much, just a thin layer of lipstick that made her supple lips stand out, specifically against her copper-like, tan skin.  
His eyes traveled lower, she wore a simple gold necklace, with a single silver charm shaped like a crescent moon.  
A light blue dress hugged her frame, finishing the image were the aforementioned silver heels.  
"Let's just walk the rest of the way., Percy finally said.  
Zoe nodded in agreement.  
She matched him in stride and wrapped herself around the boy's chest.  
"Percy, I'm cold."  
She shivered against him, sending a thrill up Percy's back.  
"No, you aren't. You've spent millennia living in the wilderness."  
Zoe puffed out her cheeks cutely and stuck her tongue out at the boy. She continued with a pout that made Percy's heart melt.  
The boy rolled his eyes and wrapped her with his right arm.  
"Better?"  
Zoe nodded, "Better."  
Percy suddenly heard a whistle.  
He turned around, only to be met with a pair of very familiar faces.  
"Bianca, I must be dreaming. I did not just see Zoe freaking Nightshade pout at kelp head."  
The daughter of Zeus had a shit eating grin on her face.  
"No Thalia, I don't think you were dreaming. If you were, then the entire evening would have been a dream-"  
A blushing Thalia clamped her palm over Bianca's mouth.  
"Too much detail! Stop!"  
Percy and Zoe were colored a deep crimson at what the younger girl was insinuating.  
"We- uh- We should get going!"  
Percy coughed into his fist and led the way, he was probably walking in the wrong direction, when Zoe pulled him over by the hand and began walking the other way, leaving a blushing Thalia, mad a laughing Bianca behind.  
________________________________________  
Percy's snapped open his eyes to the sound of footsteps. His face adorned with a crimson flush. He struggled to erase the image of Bianca and Thalia… He shuddered at the thought. It was not a visual he wanted stuck in his head. (Why not? :3)  
He was in his personal tent at the hunters' camp. Yesterday had been his first night back with the hunters and it didn't go fully well for him.  
He looked around him. The cloth walls were bare. Only a pile of clothes laid in the corner. He looked under his sheets just in case Artemis had decided to alter his anatomy during the night.  
He let out a sigh of relief when he found everything where it should've been. Fortunately, she hadn't changed him. Yet. He was still a boy.  
Unfortunately, he was lying under two tents.  
"Knock, knock!"  
Call it déjà vu, it was Zoe's voice. The same beautiful voice.  
Not that he thought her voice was beautiful or anything… well it was but…  
"Lady Artemis wants to have a word with you Percy," her voice rung out again. The outline of her form came from the front of his tent. The tent that he slept in. Not the other one.  
"One – one moment!" Percy shouted, blushing. Luckily, Zoe wasn't able to see him at the moment.  
"Okay."  
After five minutes of imagining dead kittens and puppies, he was finally able to leave the tent after changing with some semblance of decency.  
"Jackson, milady wants to see you. Don't keep her waiting."  
Percy rolled his eyes at the daughter of Ares. "I'm heading them right now, Phoebe. Hold your horses."  
The girl huffed, "Hurry up then!"  
He rolled his sea green orbs again.  
When Percy reached the slightly larger tent, he knocked against a post set up beside the tent, something Zoe had ignored to do in favor of saying 'knock knock'.  
"Come in, Percy."  
The boy pulled away the fabric and stepped into the goddess' tent. It was as he remembered it, still would have given any member of PETA a heart attack.  
"Sit."  
Percy complied without question.  
"You are to remain in the hunt with us for at least a couple of years, and while I do believe that they are unnecessary in your case, I am going to have to set up a few ground rules."  
Percy nodded vigorously, not wishing to offend the goddess, who has so kindly not decided to turn him into target practice for the hunters yet.  
"You are a hormonal male teenager amidst more hormonal female teenagers. I trust you know where I'm going with this."  
Percy nodded, perfectly understand the opposite person-err goddess' position in the matter  
"When you were with us earlier, I made sure to exhaust you to the bones so you wouldn't have been able to do anything, even if you wanted to, but now, seeing as you aren't going to be a puddle of sweat by the end of the day, I trust that you will not use that boy-ish charm of yours to sway my hunters."  
Percy blushed, the last sentence almost sounded like a complement from the goddess.  
"O-of course not milady."  
The goddess released a sigh of relief and relaxed her posture.  
"Now that that's done and dusted, let's start off with the second rule."  
Percy gulped. Second rule?  
"Treat Zoe right."  
Percy's eyes widened.  
"What?"  
"Don't give me that surprised look, Jackson. You know what I'm talking about."  
"But you said to not flirt with the girls. What do you mean –"  
"I sense you like my lieutenant," the moon goddess stated. Her silver glowing eyes met his, unnerving him. There was no malice, no rage in her eyes. What there was curiosity… and hope?  
"What!? No! No! I – I don't like – I mean. Not romantically. I mean, she's been nice to hang out with, but she's a hunter – and stuff – and"  
Artemis' blank expression broke into a grin. She looked to be holding back her laughter.  
"You are rambling."  
The son of Poseidon paled. "Please don't turn me into a jackolope."  
Artemis wavered the bow in her hand around distractedly. "Percy, I fear I cannot destroy emotions that are already present. I can only do, is strive my best to prevent disaster. … I am still unsure what I will do with the two of you. I fear, Zoe will not like losing you. You two have grown quite close…"  
Percy sat still.  
Artemis waved the bow at him dismissively. "But do not worry about it. As long as you do not hurt Zoe…" She left the threat to hang.  
"… So, you aren't mad?"  
Artemis tilted her head. "I truly cannot believe I am saying this – but –" She took a deep breath. "You… you are a good man. That is a very rare thing. You are nothing like most of the men in the world. I know you will treat a girl right."  
Percy squirmed.  
He wasn't exactly sure himself about his feelings for the other brunette. They were... Complicated to say the least. On one hand, Zoe Nightshade was most definitely a very attractive girl, not only that, but she was also strong in more ways than one, she was also smart, kind(mostly), brave, and a natural born leader.  
Artemis gained an amused going in her eye. "I like how you think about my lieutenant, Jackson."  
Oops...  
"All I can tell you right now, is that Zoe likes you too, but she isn't fully ready to admit it to herself."  
Percy slowly nodded. He was honesty surprised at what the goddess before him was saying, it was almost as if-  
"Consider this to be a blessing to you, allowing you to court my daughter in all but blood, and friend. Do not waste this chance Percy."  
Artemis gave the boy a small smile, leaving him more confused than ever.  
"Remember, if Zoe does decide to be courted by you, she will no longer, officially be a part of the hunt. You know how much she loves being a part of the hunt, so you better convince her that you are worth it."  
Percy nodded mutely, yet again.  
He was going to be in for a long two years...  
"Now, onto matters of training. The future has been modified drastically. You should stop trying to make things go as they had done in your timeline. Forget about it. Act as if you would if you had no idea about the future."  
"Okay."  
"Now, Bianca is no longer a part of the hunt, but she will be with us for most the year." Percy nodded, already knowing this information.  
"You will be in charge of training her. Leave the archery to us, but we need someone to teach her how to fight up close."  
"Sure. I can do that," Percy said fingering Riptide in his pocket.  
"The five of you; Zoe, Phoebe, Thalia, Bianca and you have the rest of the day off. You start training tomorrow."  
"Yes milady."  
Artemis stared at him. "Call me Artemis, Percy. No one really does, so I'd like to have at least one person to call me by my name." She smiled at him. "The hunters refuse to call me for the sake of respect. My annoying excuse of a brother calls me 'little sis' much to my chagrin. My father calls me daughter and I don't want to bother with the rest of the council. Just call me, Artemis, Percy."  
The son of Poseidon grinned at her, before standing up. "Lord Hades has requested that I take Bianca to the underworld to visit her brother. May I…."  
The goddess nodded. "Of course, of course. Nico is a fine boy. I do not want to be the reason Bianca di Angelo loses contact with her brother. Just be back before dinner. I heard Phoebe's going to chef of choice tonight, and I trust you wouldn't want to miss her venison steak."  
Artemis stared off, drooling.  
"Uhh…" Percy started, "yes. I should be going then. If I want us to be back for dinner then."  
Artemis looked back at him like she hadn't been drooling moments earlier. "Perfect! Of you go!"

________________________________________  
Chapter 46: Charon  
________________________________________  
Bianca was talking to one of the other new hunters, Rachel (Berry) on a tree stump, when Percy approached them. Rachel's gaze met with Percy's and a grin broke out on her face.  
"Morning Bianca! Artemis has given us the rest of the day off to go visit Nico and Hades in the underworld. If you wanted to…"  
The daughter of Hades' face broke out into a likewise smile. Admittedly, she was really beginning to miss her brother and his overall annoying- err... Charming character.  
"Uh, can we go after breakfast?" Bianca asked. Against her will, it was that moment when her stomach decided to do an imitation of a killer whale.  
Percy and Rachel laughed wholeheartedly, causing a flush to form on the brunette girl's face.  
"Sure," Percy choked through the laughing.  
Luckily, Rachel stepped in before any sort of mockery could pursue. "Forgotten about me, have you Percy? You haven't even wished me a good morning yet. If this trend continues into the foreseeable future, then I will be greatly disappointed."  
The son of Poseidon sweat-dropped, shifting his attention to the other brunette, "Oh – umm of course not, Rache. Just wanted to make sure I let Bianca know about the plans we have for the day." He shrugged. "I should – umm – go now. Yeah, I think Zoe needed me for something."  
The boy quickly turned around and scampered off, probably to actually meet Zoe (The boy didn't make his crush on the girl very difficult to hide), leaving the two younger girls in fits of laughter.  
"You seem pretty close with Percy," Bianca noted, "I thought you would be like the other hunters and hate him because he is well… a guy."  
Rachel waved her hand in dismissal, "Percy is fine. We became friends when he joined us temporarily all the way to San Francisco. I mean, it wasn't his fault that he was born a guy, right?"  
Bianca nodded. "Yeah it isn't. But that made me wonder… why does it seem like he's trying to avoid you?"  
Rachel blushed slightly. A nervous chuckle escaped her lips. "Oh that, umm he might have had seen me… uh… naked?"  
Bianca's dark eyes widened in surprise, "What?!"  
The shorter girl chuckled nervously again, "Long story. But basically, it was totally my fault."  
She seemed to shudder at the memory, but Bianca wasn't too sure.  
"Well anyway, what have you thought so far about the hunt Bianca?"  
Bianca shrugged. "I don't know. I mean at the very beginning the opportunity sounded like a godsend…"  
"Well technically, it is," Rachel interrupted. "You know, with Artemis being a goddess and all that."  
Bianca blushed. "You know what I meant. It was an expression. As I was saying at first the opportunity was a godsend. Finally, after years of babysitting my brother I can be free…"  
Rachel nodded in understanding, "You miss him."  
"That's why I'm so excited to see him again," Bianca confessed, "I hope he is doing well without me."  
Rachel laughed. "If he's anything like you, I think he'll hold. Besides, he has his father to 'not' watch over him. But we all know he actually is. He should be fine."  
"Yeah…" she sighed. She glanced at her fellow huntress nervously. "Uh Rachel? Can I ask you something?"  
"Yes?" Rachel asked quizzingly.  
"Umm, okay. I know this is the future and things have changed. They're a lot more… accepting now. I know the hunters don't allow us to have romantic relations with boys but…"   
Rachel's eyes widened, making Bianca regret her decision. "No way! You're –"  
Bianca squirmed.  
Rachel leaned in for the sake of privacy. "Who is it? Anyone in particular?"  
"Umm..." Bianca said, avoiding her glance.  
"Fine, you don't have to tell me. Honestly, I still haven't learned half the rules of this place either," Rachel admitted, which made Bianca breathe out in relief. Rachel pulled Bianca from the tree stump, "Don't worry, I won't say anything until you want me to. Now come on, I'll know what will brighten your mood up. I smell breakfast!"  
"Yeah, I guess I do feel a bit peckish."  
The shorter girl then grimaced, "I also smell meat. Someone is about to get murdered!"  
After breakfast, they were pretty much set. The hunters had the courtesy to pack a backpack for her, which was filled with everything from a tent, lighters, snacks and odd bits of survival gear. As always, it weighed less than a feather on her back.  
"Ready to go?" Percy elbowed her, grinning. Bianca told him yes, as they made their way out of town and into the mountains. He seemed a lot more relaxed, at least until Zoe Nightshade decided to join them.  
"Percy, Bianca, wait up!" she said as she jogged to catch up with them.  
Percy turned to the demi-titan and raised an eyebrow. "Lieutenant Nightshade," he greeted formally. He might have sneaked in a salute. Since when did he start calling her by that? "What may we do have the pleasure?"  
Zoe rolled her eyes at the son of Poseidon. "Give it a break, Percy. We can continue our... our discussion another time. I've come to accompany you two on your venture to the Underworld."  
"What?"  
"Artemis has just remembered that for general safety on a quest, there must be a group of three that ventures out. Three is a sacred unbreakable number, and since our goal is the underworld, we might need it."   
"But this isn't a quest, and we've been INVITED to the underworld," Percy rationalized.  
Zoe sighed, "Would you prefer if I send another hunter with you two? Rachel perhaps?"  
Percy's face reddened. "What – no – what are you saying?"  
"I'm saying –"  
"Don't I have a say into this?" Bianca finally spoke up. The two looked at her, probably ashamed by their actions, but one couldn't know for sure when it came to those two.  
"Oh. Of course," Percy stammered while Zoe looked away from the son of Poseidon.  
"Okay, so I want Zoe along. I mean, if you still want to come, that is, lieutenant."  
Zoe growled, "Of course."  
Bianca clapped her hands. "That settles it!" She looked at the sky. By her estimates it was already nearing seven o'clock. "I may be new at this, but we better get going. I don't know about you two, but all that hype during breakfast about Phoebe's venison makes me want to be back by then. So, let's get a move on!"  
________________________________________  
They made it to DOA Studios by one in the afternoon. It had been a long one-thousand-mile trek, across the rugged dry steppes of Utah and the worse run in visits of at the Hoover Dam and Las Vegas. Gladly, the trio had decided to make a wide arch around the Las Vegas strip.  
Bianca didn't have fond memories of the place, and she suspected neither did Percy. If they had even gotten close to the Lotus Casino… She shuddered. She did not want to spent another seventy years at the place, just when she was getting somewhat accustomed to the early 21st century.  
"This is the place?" Zoe asked as they strolled down Valencia Boulevard. Ahead of them was this large steel building lined with pitch black marble. On top etched in large golden letters were: DOA RECORDING STUDIOS  
Underneath stenciled on the lone glass doors that decorated the front of the building read: NO SOLICITORS. NO LOITERING. NO LIVING.  
Percy whistled looking at the building as a whole. "This place is bigger than I remember it. Hades must've upgraded it recently. Maybe Charon used those Drachmas I gave him."  
"You've visited the Underworld before?" Bianca asked him.  
He nodded, but did not reveal any details.  
Zoe stared at the signs with a calm gleam. "After all these years of escaping and avoiding death, I never thought I would walk into the underworld under my own will."  
Percy murmured an agreement. The two seemed mesmerized by the shiny glass doors.  
Bianca sighed. Something odd was happening between those two, but she didn't dwell on the idea. She pushed open the doors and walked in. Reluctantly, her two friends followed.  
Inside, the lobby was brightly lit and featured a spacious seating area. What was surprising was that the place was full of people… Dead ones anyway. They were what you would expect. They looked pretty much like normal people except the fact they were mostly transparent.  
Behind the security desk sat a tough-looking guard with sunglasses and an earpiece.  
The man was tall, elegant, and handsome, with chocolate-colored skin and bleached-blond hair, shaved military style. He wore tortoise-shell shades and a silk Italian suit that matched his hair. A black rose was pinned to his lapel under a silver name tag.  
She turned to her friends. "What now?"  
Percy pointed to the security guard. "We talk to him."  
The guard looked up from his papers when Percy pointed at him, and he dropped his shades, revealing his eyes. His eyes are empty, full of death and despair.  
"Jackson."  
Percy grinned, "Charon."  
The man grunted, "Dead this time, boy?"  
Percy shook his head, "Not quite yet, but I'm here for Lord Hades." Percy brandished his ring, causing the (Greek) god of boundaries' eyes to widen.  
"Well, I suppose that since you got me that raise, I could take you and your friends."  
His soulless eyes scanned the two girls.  
His eyes first landed on Zoe, "The girl is nervous. Don't like the feeling of death, girlie?"  
Before Zoe could retort, the man spoke again. This time, his vision was fixed on Bianca.  
"You-" He sniffed the air, "You must be that Nico kid's big sister. He couldn't stop yapping about how great you are all the way across the Styx."  
Bianca blushed, then felt guilt creep into her. She had abandoned Nico for immortality but yet he apparently still talked really high of her.  
"Percy? Zoe? Bianca?"  
A familiar voice made the three of them turn their heads.  
"Annabeth?!" Percy rushed forward and tried to embrace the blonde daughter of Athena.  
She looked exactly as she did, before her death.  
He failed and ran straight through her, landing flat on his face, Bianca glanced at Zoe, she seemed to almost be glaring at the blonde.  
"Jealous much?" Bianca whispered, shoving her lieutenant.  
"Shut up," Zoe hissed.  
Annabeth turned around to face Percy, "What are you doing here Percy?"  
The boy got on his feet and dusted off his silver parka and grinned at her, "We're here to see Nico."  
Annabeth nodded and smiled, "I missed you."  
Percy's smile grew somber, "Yeah, me too."  
The blonde then attempted to cheer the boy up, "Hey, don't be sad, my time had come. Don't waste the rest of your life moping about. I'm sure you'll be fine."  
Percy grinned at the girl again. Annabeth then gained an inquisitive expression, "What's with the silver? Don't tell me-"  
He cut her off, "Yep, I gotta stay with the hunters."  
Annabeth laughed, "Good luck then. I'm not hoping to see you on this side just because you pissed off those angry feminists"  
Zoe coughed, Annabeth sent her an apologetic look.  
"Well, I guess not all of them are too bad. You two are fine."  
Percy smiled, "Thalia too."  
Annabeth's eyes widened, "She joined the hunters?! Why?"  
She was gonna turn sixteen, the gods made her a hunter to delay the great prophecy.  
Charon cleared his throat, "We need to get going, I don't have all day."  
"Alright then Annabeth, I guess this is goodbye for good then."  
"Yeah..."  
Percy turned away, walking towards the other hunters that had come with him.  
"Why are you still here, don't you have the drachmas the pay for the voyage into the underworld?"  
Annabeth smiled slightly, "I guess I just didn't want to let go of my life quite yet. I- I'm just scared..." Her expression then hardened, "But, I think I'm ready now."  
Percy turned to Charon. He spoke in a tone that left no room for argument, "Annabeth is coming with us till the Styx."  
The ferryman didn't bother, "As long as she pays. She can go with you until she reaches the judges."  
Percy grinned, Annabeth jogged over to the four and smiled at them.  
The five of them walked towards Charon's boat.  
"How are you gonna get all the way to Lord Hades' Palace? Last time wasn't very easy."  
Percy showed the girl his golden ring, making her gasp.  
"It looks beautiful, but how is a ring going to help you."  
Percy grinned, "Hades said that it will teleport me to anywhere I want in the underworld, and I can use it to get out."  
Annabeth stared at him wide eyed, "You gained the favor of one of the Big Three?"  
Percy nodded with a toothy grin, "Yeah, I know I'm pretty awesome."  
Bianca finally decided to clear her throat, deciding that she was feeling left out.  
"Forgotten about me, have you Annabeth?"  
Even though she had lost all color, Bianca could've sworn seeing a blush illuminate on the daughter of Athena's face. "Of course not, Bianca. It's just that-"  
Bianca cut her off with a laugh, "It's fine. This might be the last time you get to see Percy." she managed to say in between chuckles. Bianca gained a mischievous glint, "Maybe."  
The others looked at her weirdly but said nothing.  
Zoe was still glaring at Annabeth, but no one seemed to notice except Bianca.  
"We're here."  
Bianca looked forward was surprised to say the least. Moments ago, they were still in the lobby but the scene had faded away like an illusion. The murky waters of the river were all she could see. The entire river was littered in broken hopes and dreams, remnants of a life that people wished to forget.  
"Home..."

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Chapter 47: Nico  
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It had been a couple of days since Annabeth Chase's shroud had been set alight, and still Nico di Angelo felt disheartened. The boy hadn't really known the girl for long, but he had still been saddened by her death nevertheless. She had been part of the party that had saved his sister and him and it a strange sort of way, he felt a sense in guilt that he could not repay her for what she did for him.  
Annabeth Chase was dead and Nico di Angelo was never going to see her again.  
The camp, on the other hand was taking her death much harder. Although no one said it, Nico sensed Annabeth was a figurative camp leader. To many, she was a sister figure, someone to look up to, just like how he looked up to Bianca in many aspects.  
He didn't know what he would've done if he lost her… He suspected the same despair that he had felt floating around would strike him.  
For two entire days, the camp seemed to be in complete depression. Every camper paid their respects to the fallen daughter of Athena in their own ways. Classes were paused or silent. The normally loud and light meals turned somber. For the first few days, it had felt the entire camp had seemed to undergo a complete shutdown.  
Slowly, though, the camp began to return into the regular swing of things. Classes resumed and a certain amount - although limited - of joy returned to the Dining Pavilion.  
Malcolm Pace, who was only a few months younger than Annabeth was made the new head counselor of Cabin Six. After Annabeth, he had been the oldest, and was automatically assigned the role.  
For Nico himself, his day started off fairly normally. He had been awoken by the large mechanical rooster that nested atop the Hermes cabin. The scratchy caws of the imitation bird awoke nearly every asleep camper in the wooden cabin. Nico's eyes snapped open to meet the forms a dozen other campers stumbling around in slow fits of groans. They - like him - were not morning people. Since Nico was last in seniority, Nico was last to get to use the restroom. By the time he reached the showers, the water was freezing.  
Connor and Travis Stoll, the (not-quite) twin leaders of the Hermes cabin led the demigods to the dining pavilion for their breakfast when they finished. Nico had his regular hot chocolate, with a couple slices of buttered toast and rusk (which he dipped in the hot chocolate). After that, everyone hoarded out to their respective classes.  
First up, Nico had ancient Greek for an hour and half with Malcolm. He found that he was half decent at the language and Malcolm applauded him with his progress. Even though he had struggled in the beginning he was started to be able to stumble through a few lines of Homer without too much trouble.  
He then had Sword Skills.  
That's was when things broke away from his predetermined schedule. When he wandered into the armory to pick up a (probably horribly unbalanced) sword, his eyes were drawn to a blade that most definitively hadn't been present the previous day. The blade of the sword was black as a nightmare and truly frightening. The hilt was wrapped in black-stained leather. The sword seemed to be giving off a sinister purple glow.  
He seemed strangely attracted to the sword. He reached out to it with his left (dominant) hand.  
A hand on his shoulder stopped his motion. Nico whirled around to be met face to face with a tall, African-American dude with a permanent scowl, muscles like a pro ballplayer, and hands like catcher's mitts which were calloused from working in the armory all day: Charles Beckendorf.  
"It would be better if you didn't touch that sword, it hasn't been forged by any of my brothers, and it seems to have appeared overnight. There are chances that it might be cursed. It is a very likely probability with the Titans on the rise."  
Nodding his head in understanding, Nico backed away from the blade, but he felt his curiosity gnaw at him. The blade seemed to be calling out to him, begging for him to pick it up. He shook his head to clear his thoughts. Beckendorf had told him not the touch the blade, so he wouldn't disrespect the wishes of one of the oldest campers... Yet...  
He picked up one of the horribly unbalanced swords off on the side of the unusual blade, and went on ahead with the rest of the Hermes kids to the training grounds.  
He wouldn't lie, he was barely able to swing the massive sword he had picked up, the dull blade even managed to slip out of his hand a few times. One would think that after nearly a week of trying, he would finally finally find a half decent sword.  
But no, he had tried nearly every single available blade in camp half blood, and none were right for him.  
A by-product of this fact was him getting his ass handed to him every single day during spars (mostly by the Ares cabin, and his skinny body barely being able to keep up with the training schedule.  
By the time the class was done with, Nico was exhausted. He dragged the large sword back to the armory, glad that the next class in his schedule wasn't too physically intensive (Greek Mythology with Grover).  
Nico made his way into the small-ish building that was the armory.  
His eyes caught the black blade once again. He glanced around nervously. The room was filled with people, but Beckendorf was nowhere to be seen.  
He felt his curiosity get the better of him. He dropped the bulky blade and reached out to the blade.  
The grip felt soft in his hands. Nothing seemed to be off with the blade. He didn't seem to be instantly poisoned, nor did he spontaneously combust. Maybe the sword wasn't cursed like the large son of Hephaestus had suggested?  
Nico lifted the blade and instantly felt reinvigorated, he felt energy course through him. He had honestly never felt as... alive… that was the word. Alive. He had never felt as alive as he had at that very moment. He attempted a few experimental swings. The sword left a deep purple trail behind it as it sliced through the air. The blade seemed to be perfectly weighted, it neither felt far too light for him, neither was it impossible to carry. It was perfect!  
That was when he noticed the other campers staring at him in mute shock. He glanced above himself. He almost lost it, but the definitely caught the fading figure of a gleaming Celestial Bronze Greek war helmet, decorated with scenes of fearsome death and holographic helmet was enshrouded in a deep purple glow. The Helm of Darkness.  
Chiron seemed to appear into the armory from nowhere, a grave look on his face. "All Hail Nico di Angelo, Son of Hades."  
________________________________________  
On the plus side, Nico was able to get his very own room at the Big House. Apparently, Hades did not have his own cabin, and since the Stoll Brothers were less than interested to keep him around…. the Big House was the lone option. Nico couldn't say he was glad to have some peace. Here, he had his own bed, instead of laying on the floor with a sleeping bed. He hated too much attention, and the Hermes Cabin was always too claustrophobic for his liking.  
Then there were all the negatives. Nearly every camper avoided his presence like the plague. He got strange looks whenever he walked anywhere in the camp. Some people that he had started to become acquainted to drifted off, and avoided him. He was treated like a complete outcast. And although they pretended as though they hadn't treated him any different before he was determined, he knew they did.  
Being the Son of Hades was horrible.  
There were, of course exceptions to these. For one, Charles Beckendorf and his girlfriend Silena Beauregard treated him no different, albeit Beckendorf was slightly miffed that Nico had gone against his direct orders to not touch the blade. Speaking of the blade, the black sword was carefully sheathed to his right thigh, never leaving his possession. After those two came most of the cabin counselors such as Malcolm Pace, Katie Gardner, and The Stoll Brothers.  
One peculiar person to not completely loathe his presence was Will Solace, one of Apollo's sons. The boy seemed to stare at Nico when he thought the son of Hades wasn't looking. It didn't completely freak him out, and he did kind of enjoy the attention weirdly enough.  
Nico had to drag himself off his bed to go the dining pavilion for breakfast. He wasn't keen on enduring the prejudice shown by the campers.  
That was not what he was witness to in the dining pavilion though. Awaiting his presence in the dining pavilion was a man, that he realized with a start was his father. Hades.  
"I have a proposal for you Nico. Come with me to the underworld..."

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Chapter 48: Nightcrawler  
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Her father's palace was absolutely beautiful.  
It was evident that Hades' palace was modelled after Mount Olympus when she first laid her eyes on it. She took in details of the enormous palace as they walked towards it, comparing it to its twin.  
It was made of glittering black obsidian, with black marble portico and the entry hall had a polished bronze door. If she were to compare Hades' palace to Olympus, she noticed that the former was black and bronze, while everything in the latter glittered silver and white. As they entered, they walked by skeleton guards which guarded the entrance. Every skeleton was different, some wearing modern American camouflage, others wearing what looked like German world war two uniforms.  
After the gates, in front of the palace was Persephone's Garden, which has been said to be one of the most beautiful gardens on Earth. A person can only reach the palace if Hades wishes them to. If he does not, the person will just keep walking for eternity without ever reaching it.  
Bianca could only stare in awe at what was presented before her, looking at various plants, all strangely tinged in darker hues of green and purple.  
The flapping of leathery wings broke Bianca out of her revere.  
"Alecto," she heard Percy hiss out. It was clear that the son of Poseidon wasn't very fond of the fury.  
"Follow. Lord Hades awaits you."  
The bat-like creature turned around, and with a flap of its leathery wings, flew onwards, into the palace. The group entered the palace, following the beast.  
Bianca could only look around in awe. Hades' palace has several magnificent halls made entirely of pure gold and silver, decorated with bouquets of flowers made of precious metals and jewels.  
Alecto led them straight to the throne room.  
Hades was seated on his throne, Persephone seated beside him. The goddess of spring adorned a scowl on her face, which only seemed to deepen when she took notice of Bianca.  
"Bianca." Hades got off his throne, wearing a rugged, yet warm (Well... As warm as the god of the underworld could be) smile on his face. He approached his daughter, shrinking down from godly size and embraced her.  
Bianca found it immensely awkward to hug her father, when his wife (who wasn't her mother), sat within her vision, glaring daggers into her.  
"My lord. I still believe you should reconsider." The goddess of Spring's words was laced with venom. "These – these children should remain above at that wretch camp."  
Hades untangled himself from his daughter and turned to face his wife. The usually ill-tempered god had a more cooled and collected expression than what Bianca had expected. "And I believe that we have already discussed this, Persephone. These – my children, are not suited for the world above. Not without correct guidance. Give it time, you will grow to care for him."  
The goddess sighed in resentment, knowing full well that her wishes would not be granted. Once her husband made up his mind, there was no stopping him. It was trait that he shared with both his brothers. She supposed, it was one of the things that made them family.  
"Come with me you three, Nico is growing restless in his solitude."  
Nodding their heads, the three followed the god of the underworld to where they assumed Nico was. Bianca could feel Persephone's harden stare on her back as they left.  
They eventually made to a room which had a door different from those around it. Instead of a dark ebony, this door seemed to be made of a deeply stained oak that nearly seemed to be absorbing the light from around it, making it appear darker than it actually was.  
Hades turned the doorknob and pushed the door open, not bothering to knock.  
Nico whirled around.  
"Bianca! Percy!"  
The kid dropped the sword that he was holding and rushed at his sister tackling her in a giant bear hug, he clearly missed her dearly.  
"You kept your promise!"  
He was talking to Percy.  
Percy grinned and ruffled the son of Hades' hair. "Course I did Nico; did you doubt me?"  
Bianca couldn't tell what it was, but something seemed off about the way he had spoken those words. She noticed that beads of sweat had accumulated on the boy's forehead when he answered her younger brother. He just seemed to emit a nervous air around him.  
Bianca noticed the dropped blade. The sword was black as night, and seemed to emit a threatening vibe. Its hilt was wrapped in black-stained leather and the entire blade gave off a purple glow.  
Nico walked back to the sword and picked it up, swinging it around playfully.  
"I call it Nightcrawler. It's pretty cool right?"  
Percy whistled in admiration, "That's a nice blade you've got there Nico. Was it a gift from Hades?"  
Nico nodded, the toothy grin that Bianca had grew up to tolerate appeared. "Yeah, dad said that I needed to learn how to fight and none of the camp swords were right for me. This one is perfect."  
Her brother swung it once more, pretending to stab some invisible monster. Percy chuckled at the boy's enthusiasm.  
"Wanna test it out against Riptide over here? Don't worry; I'll go easy on ya."  
Nico grinned, "You're on!"  
Hades cleared his throat, "Nico, what have I told you about training inside. Go to the courtyard."  
With a snap of his fingers, the two boys were suddenly in the palace courtyard. Zoe, Bianca and Hades stood by the sidelines.  
"I'm curious to see how you have improved Percy. From what Artemis has alluded towards, I am expecting quite a spectacle from you."  
Nico narrowed his eyes at Percy, "I know I'm pretty new, but don't go easy on me. Please."  
Percy nodded, uncapping Riptide. He fell into the hunter's stance.  
Nico gripped the sword in his left hand and fell into an unfamiliar stance.  
"Dad taught me this little trick."  
Nico disappeared into the shadows and attempted to flank Percy.  
The son of Poseidon seemed to anticipate this and blocked the swing. Recovering, Nico attempted to stab Percy.  
Percy deflected the blade, analyzing Nico's technique. "You're putting too much weight on the blade. You're bound to lose balance."  
The son of Poseidon crouched and swept his foot, tripping the son of Hades.  
Nico got back on his feet and charged at Percy yet again. Percy avoided a swing and parried a slash.  
"Slow. You need to work on your speed, Nico."  
Growling in frustration, Nico charged even harder at Percy. Raising the blade high over his head, Nico swung in a wide arc.  
"Bad move."  
Percy disarmed Nico and the son of Hades fell to the ground, covered in bruises. When Nico recovered his senses, he found Riptide's tip at his throat.  
Percy smiled at Nico's pouting face, "Cheer up. You did great for someone with as less experience as you."  
Nico looked up and grinned at Percy. "I'll beat you some day, Percy"  
Percy grinned, "You can try." He laughed out loud at Nico's scowl, before pulling him up.

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Chapter 49: Fear  
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Zoe wheezed out the breath she had been holding. She was honestly glad that they were finally out of the underworld. A sense of relief washed over her when they emerged from the land of the dead. As much as she was reluctant to admit it, Percy had been right.  
He had told her that maybe going to the underworld with Bianca and himself was not the best idea, but Zoe had been adamant and head strong to venture with the pair.  
Percy had found her by her tent after he had supposedly spoken with Bianca. He had told her that he was going to take Bianca to the Underworld to meet her father and brother. Zoe had made a point of wanting to go with Bianca; not because she didn't trust him with her safety, but merely because Bianca was still fairly new, and while she suspected Percy Jackson more than enough to protect the daughter of Hades, Zoe had figured that her centuries of experience could be an asset as well as it felt like her solemn duty to protect the newest of her hunters.  
Percy had argued that it probably wasn't the best idea for Zoe to be go into the underworld as she had recently just escaped death; and to add, she was technically supposed to be dead. Zoe, for some idiotic reason felt compelled to defend her pride and demand that Percy let her come with them. The boy refused, but she had merely asked the son of Poseidon out of politeness. The daughter of Atlas was already going to go, no matter what Percy's stance on the matter was going to be.  
At the time, Zoe was only doing what she thought was the most rational choice. It blew up in her face.  
There had been a moment of flaring anger between the two. The hunter might've succumbed towards the tension at the moment, sprouting out an outburst she now regretted. Her words had been something along the lines of: 'You insolent boy. You are now part of the hunt, and I, as your lieutenant demand that you allow me to accompany you along your quest.'  
In hindsight, the words might've come out a bit harsh.  
The boy had stiffened, staring towards the ground - refusing to make eye contact with her before stalking away. He did not even turn back to face at Zoe as the shock of what she had let out began to dawn upon herself.  
The huntress felt ashamed of how she had behaved, but her pride refrained her from letting the two demigods venture off to the underworld by themselves.  
After collecting her lady's permission, she did just that, much to the chagrin of a certain son of Poseidon.  
The journey to the underworld had been a somber one. Zoe did not speak much to anything during their trek to Los Angeles, nor did Bianca or Percy. Even at DOA studios, she had stayed mute as they had caught up with the spirit of Annabeth Chase. But what had been even worse was the sense of dread, sailing over the river Styx as they made their way into the Underworld. The sense of dread had crept up her spine - a cool numbing that made her shiver. She felt naked and exposed. She was not supposed to be here. An overwhelming amount of dolefulness clouded her thoughts as images of countless deaths she had witnessed rung flashed by her eyes.  
The river churned below her feet in anticipation, as if she was the river's favorite dish for dinner. And it was famished.  
When they parted ways with Annabeth, the other spirits of the dead they encountered did not make her feel welcomed. They called out to her, her calling out to them. Her obsidian-black eyes met with the glowing eyes of one of the judges: King Minos. The dead king had a glint in his eyes, like he knew that she was supposed to be in line for judging as well.  
She remained silent, even as Bianca wandered the grounds looking around in awe, and Percy keeping the daughter of Hades reined in along the correct path. She had lived thousands of years, many times narrowly escaping death. Being here on her own terms - felt simply wrong. She knew it was just her imagination, but it the place felt like it was sapping upon her life energy. She like if she opened her mouth, she would end up screaming in fear - or worse.  
Zoe had to bite her tongue down when they were confronted by the kindly one Alecto. Zoe bowed low when they met Hades, fearing the god may figure out why she was so nervous if their eyes were to meet.  
When Percy had sparred with the son of Hades - Nico, she remembered, she didn't congratulate Percy like she wanted too. Instead, she remained a silent observer.  
When Hades was showing Percy how to use his ring, the huntress spoke nothing. It wasn't until Percy placed his hand on his shoulder, did she finally take a sharp intake of air out of instinct, before her vision blacked.  
Then, they were back at the hunters' camp. She breathed out, exhaling slowly.  
It was late evening. The pleasant aroma of Phoebe's venison floated through the wintergreen forest air; which was a great improvement of the musk of the Underworld. They were safe.  
"Ah, delightful, you have returned," Artemis spoke, making her presence known. The words broke Zoe out of her trance-like state. "Phoebe is just about done preparing dinner. You better come quickly to the table, before the others finish it without you."  
Her best friend/mother figure's warm smile nearly melted away all the fear and discomfort that had consumed Zoe just moments ago.  
The meal was fabulous as always. Phoebe was heralded yet again for her culinary skills. Rachel tried to not throw up at the site of her sisters pigging out on the meat, and stuck to her corner of the makeshift table munching on her salad quietly. It wasn't much long before she excused herself to the woods.  
Percy ate with gusto and was raving about how Phoebe cooked almost as good as his mother. This, of course led the competitive girl to place a wager, a challenge: the next time the hunters were to go to Manhattan, Phoebe Wynters and Sally Jackson would have a cook-off. The hunters cheered; most having ignored the fact that there was a boy was among their midst.  
The entire time, a false smile was plastered on Zoe's face. But luckily, her feelings of dread had completely faded by the time the hunters had been dismissed to go to sleep.  
Zoe caught Percy just as he was making his way to her mind, she walked up to him, fully intent on apologizing for her rude words earlier.  
"Percy," she said. The boy turned around and smiled softly at the girl.  
Zoe felt her heart flutter. Ignoring the butterflies in her stomach, Zoe attempted the speak but Percy cut her off before could begin.  
"Before you say anything, I just want to say that I'm sorry for the way I behaved. If you wanted to come to the underworld with us, then I had no right to stop you."  
Zoe choked, it had been her fault, but yet the boy was apologizing to her. Percy truly was different, it was no wonder she loved him...  
The world around her froze.  
Loved?  
Her mind stilled. Did she really think...  
No. She loved the boy as a brother. Yes, that was right. She loved Percy like a sibling. Like how she loved the hunters and sighed in relief.  
"No, I'm sorry. I should have listened to you. Y-you were right, I shouldn't have gone to the underworld. I-I was terrified."  
Zoe hated how weak she sounded. She choked back a sob. No, she wasn't to cry in front of Percy. She didn't want to show weakness if front of him.  
Zoe felt warm limbs wrap around her.  
"Zoe..." he breathed into her ears, sending a chill down her spine, except it wasn't one of dread, like she had felt in the underworld, it was one of pleasure.  
"You don't have to hold it in.” Zoe gulped. Please don't say it...  
"It's okay to cry." The floodgates had opened, next thing she knew Percy's silver tee was drenched in her salty tears. She let it all out into his shoulders, everything she had pent up inside her. All her pain, all the responsibility, everything. She let loose and released all of her pent-up emotions. All that mattered now was the boy she had, held in her arms.  
She was wrong.  
Yet again, she was wrong.  
She loved Percy Jackson. And it wasn't like how she loved the hunters.  
She loved Percy Jackson.  
Zoe closed her eyes and breathed deeply. The boys' sea breeze-esque scent filled her senses. When Zoe's eyes opened, her obsidian orbs met with those that were silvery yellow.

________________________________________  
Chapter 50: Plates  
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Artemis' day had begun like any other day. She had awoken - or at least, a god's version of 'waking', which was more akin to regaining consciousness from a voluntary coma - before the rest of her hunt, and took the liberty of setting up their breakfast. As she walked past the tents, she smiled at the silver triangles. This was her home, her family. She wouldn't trade it for anything.  
Strolling into the dining pavilion, the goddess began setting up the plates for her hunters. The goddess of the moon set them each, one at a time, silently naming who she assumed would be sitting at each particular position.  
The Olympian had made it a sort of game; making a hobby of predicting seating choices of her hunters for every meal. More often than not, her guesses would be spot on.  
She began at the head of the table with her own plate; she might be a goddess who didn't specifically need food to survive, but she rather enjoyed interacting with her hunters, and most seemed to be truly open when stuffing their face with food. (Although it was often a slight inconvenience when all that came out of her hunters' mouths were a mixture of flying foods and gibberish.) Artemis smiled at that thought.  
Going towards the opposite side of the table, she placed down a plate for her lieutenant, Zoe. To her left was a plate for Phoebe, and then Rachel Berry.  
Artemis paused, looking at the innocent plate. Perhaps... it wouldn't be the best idea to put Rachel next to Phoebe while eating vegan girl would have no end to her criticisms if she were to be seated beside Phoebe of all people.  
Instead, Artemis reassigned the seat (in her mental checklist) to another one of her hunters, the thirteen-year-old Pacifica Northwest. The Caucasian blonde from Oregon was probably one of the most dignified, when it came to all things include hygiene to fashion to her food. Artemis decided it would balance the table out if Pacific would be to dine here. It was a bit of a surprise at first to Artemis when the young daughter of Apollo - at a mere age of thirteen - would be far neater and tidier compared to some of her other hunters who were centuries older. Although seeing as her background was initially that of a rather spoiled rich kid whose adoptive parents had been murdered and her home (*cough* mansion) had been raided completely, leaving only the lonely young girl in it. Alone. Since discovering her heritage, being a daughter of Apollo, the blonde girl began work at being the main healer for the hunters.  
Artemis then placed Rachel's plate beside Pacifica's. Rachel was probably the only hunter who felt no hatred to the male gender. She was a strong, independent girl and she was also one of only two mortals that were in the current hunt. She did not hate boys, in fact, before she joined the hunt, she had been rather boy-crazy, but that toned down considerably whence she began interacting with the rest of the hunters.  
Beside her was the plate for the other mortal, and youngest (physically) of the hunters, Arya Stark. The eleven-year-old firecracker was gifted with the bow, but lacked any real skill with a blade. Artemis had found the girl orphaned and abandoned during the medieval ages in an alley near the middle of London. Artemis had offered the girl a family. The young girl of eight (at the time) had jumped at the opportunity and never looked back. Artemis had officially made her a hunter three years hence.  
Next came a rather surprising name. Juliet Capulet, daughter from an affair of Aphrodite and the Lord of the Capulet family. The young girl had been found at the age of fourteen by Artemis, after the death of her lover. (Some lovesick idiot named Romeo.) Juliet had joined Artemis in the year 1303 in Italy and had forsaken love like the rest of the hunters.  
After that, at the corner beside Artemis was Daphne Blake, a seventeen-year-old daughter of Aphrodite that Artemis recruited in the late sixties. The red-haired girl had taken the death of her friends very hard and was on the verge of offing herself before Artemis found her. The moon goddess, of course took her in, before any more harm could come to her.  
Then came her own plate, of course.  
Besides that, on the opposite side of Daphne's plate came where she assumed Mia Dearden would be sitting. Mia Dearden was a teenage runaway who was abused by her father. Unable to survive on her own, she fell in love with a man who offered her shelter and food in exchange for exploiting her in a child prostitution ring. Mia was rescued from one of her clients, a depraved local politician, by the moon goddess. Enraged at the man for his actions, Artemis slaughtered the man and put an end to his ring. The blonde girl was gifted with the bow and arrow, more so than any of the other hunters. The girl also seemed to be prone to using a larger variety of trick arrows than her sisters. The girl always seemed to gravitate towards Artemis, but the goddess didn't mind too much.  
Next was the plate of Cheryl Blossom, a legacy of Aphrodite. The redhead was yet another spoiled child, like Pacifica. Cheryl had run away from her family after the murder of her twin brother. The girl found it very difficult to open up to people so not much else was known about her background, only that her parents would rather have her estranged, that be the heir to their company, merely because she was a girl. Artemis scoffed at the sexist pigs before she answered the redhead's plea for help.  
Next up was an Indian girl named Siva. She was a daughter of Hades, but was born way before the big three had agreed to not sire any more children. The black-haired girl had blue streaks scattered across her hair and was a natural born Archer, but unlike Arya, she was quite proficient with hunting knives too. The young girl of sixteen wasn't the best at interacting with her sisters, often not revealing much in terms of emotions, but one place the girl truly connected was with the wolves the hunt had. Artemis had found the orphaned daughter of Hades during the aftermath of the first world war on the streets of Glasgow. Although being Indian, the girl had an accent similar to that of the Scots.  
Beside the Indian girl was the other daughter of Hades, Bianca and finally, last but not least, the newest addition to the hunt, Percy Jackson. He was the only boy in the hunt, and most hunters weren't too keen on his presence, so Artemis decided that the boy would probably decide to sit beside Zoe and Bianca, the two hunters he was friends with... Well he was friends with Bianca... Zoe, was more than that, but the other hunters didn't need to know that quite yet.  
Artemis laughed to herself, recalling the events of the previous night, since Percy and Zoe had returned from the underworld. Artemis of course, hadn't planned on being caught watching the two of them, but her lieutenant had far too keen an eye to miss her. That, and the fact that Artemis' eyes practically glowed under the moonlight.  
When Zoe realized that Artemis' gaze was trained on her, she stiffened up and broke away from the boy. Percy turned around and made eye contact with the goddess.  
Artemis noticed three distinct emotions play across his features; panic, fear, and then finally relief when Artemis smiled at him. Artemis left the two of them after that with rather vague parting words...  
"I may be the goddess of childbirth, but I'm not going to be expecting a Jackson Jr. running about soon."  
The two had looked at her with wide eyes, and Artemis flashed away, retiring to her tent, barely containing her laughter.  
Thankfully enough, Zoe had returned to her tent, far too embarrassed to face the boy after that entire ordeal, the two red faced half-bloods slept through a very uncomfortable night that day. Artemis stood back and admired her handiwork. All she did was place a few plates, but it was the thought she put into it that she considered great.  
Artemis and Zoe would be at the two ends of the rectangular table, one person on either side of them. The remaining ten hunters would be seated across from each other in rows of five.  
Artemis' internal musings were broken by one Zoe Nightshade, who stumbled out of her tent groggy and stiff. Clearly not having had the best night.  
"M’lady, about last night-"  
Artemis cut her off, "Don't worry Nightshade, your secret is safe with me"  
Zoe looked at her strangely. "But-"  
The goddess of the hunt rolled her eyes at her lieutenant. "Zoe… You can't lie from me. I know how you feel about the boy…" Zoe blushed, "and I have no choice but to approve. There haven’t been many boys I've grown to know that are good, and none worthy of you."  
Zoe grimaced at the words. "Artemis…"  
Artemis' eyes twinkled. "For the record, I approve. Percy is a unique case among men. He might even be worthy for your desire. But be careful, my Zoe. Love is a dangerous game, one that I fear for your sake." Artemis paused. The words felt strange in her mouth. "I have said these words to Percy too but, Zoe you have my blessing."  
Another voice broke out, " But she already has your blessing, Lady Artemis."  
The daughter of Ares peeked out from around the corner and waved indignantly.  
Zoe groaned, utterly embarrassed. "How much of that did you hear Phoebe?"  
"Eh," Phoebe shrugged. "Nothing I didn't figure out already."  
Zoe gaped at her oldest friend.  
"Oh, come on, the only way you could be any more obvious is if you walked around with a ring on your finger"  
Zoe turned a deep crimson and turned away. "Wh-who else knows?" Zoe stammered.  
Phoebe shrugged, "Bianca probably, maybe Rachel. Not too many. The others are too busy barely tolerating Percy to even consider it."

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Chapter 51: Squirrels  
________________________________________  
Suffice it to say, breakfast was rather awkward for two of her hunters, namely Percy Jackson and Zoe Nightshade. Her predictions for the seating had been spot on, and Percy had been stuck sitting next to a very anxious Zoe Nightshade. Artemis almost snickered on numerous occasions at the sight of the two of them. The two half-bloods sneaked glances at one another as they ate their food, trying their best to be discreet as possible.  
Artemis, knowing the situation, wasn't fooled, and caught along right away and made it a point to transfer this observation to Phoebe, who of course was seated beside Zoe, on the opposite side from Percy.  
The legacy of Athena met Artemis' eyes. Her eyes, shining with mirth.  
That was when Artemis got the idea.  
She brought her index finger to her lips and shushed Phoebe. Percy and Zoe, too lost in each other’s eyes failed to notice this action. Just as Percy was about to put his fork back into his mouth, Artemis snapped her fingers.  
Zoe yelped as Percy's form was enveloped in shimmering lights. Her hair grew longer, her waist wider. Her shirt grew far too tight for its swollen state.  
Perci was back!  
The hunters paused their eating to laugh, leaving Perci red-faced, and Zoe confused, before glaring at Artemis.  
Shrugging off the glare, Artemis reverted her magic, deciding the embarrassment was enough for the two.  
Percy looked down at his plate, annoyed but relieved at the same time.  
"I am never going to get used to that," he grumbled, before stuffing more food in his mouth, ignoring the snickering looks around the table.  
Artemis laughed boisterously at Percy's less-than-amused expression.  
Suddenly, there was a rustling in the bushes. Immediately alert, Artemis sprung to her feet and drew her bow, which materialized in her open palms.  
"Who's there? Show yourself!"  
The rustling continues, from the bushes emerges what looks like a masked male. The boy seemed to be of average build and just below six feet tall. His headgear comprised of a black mask and helmet closely resembling that of Darth Vader from the Star Wars movies (Just because she spent most her time in the wild, didn't mean she was completely inept at pop culture references).  
"Y-you turned that boy into a girl!"  
Artemis' fists clenched onto her bow tighter. It seems, the individual has been spying on the camp. Worse, until just now, he had been under her radar. She must have been paying a little too much attention to the plates and hunters today.  
The boy laughed mockingly, his voice echoing behind his mask. "Where are my manners, you can call me Sithdoom, the eternal overlord of all the worlds."  
Artemis' frow furrowed, confused. The boy mustn't have been entirely sober. This was made evident by the slight slur to his words and wobble to his step as he took a step towards the hunters, causing the fourteen girls to stiffen, Percy narrowed his eyes at the boy.  
"C-can you do it again, make that boy into a girl again?!" he said, and this time, she heard his slurred words. Artemis scoffed, she'd had enough of the boy's insolence, before turning him into a Vader-headed Jackalope.  
She popped herself beside the creature, but before it could hop away, she grabbed it by its neck.  
"I think I'm going to leave you like that and not kill you, just so that you can freak some unsuspecting visitors out," she whispered, "If I ever see that masked head again…."  
She let the threat hang, before shooed away the rabbit-deer hybrid.  
"Well that was weird." That comment came from Rachel.  
Artemis clapped her hands once.  
"Alright hunters, finish up quickly. I think it's about time we initiated Percy into the hunt, officially that is. Bianca too, seeing as we couldn't do it properly due to past circumstances... "  
The boy shared a look with the younger daughter of Hades and gulped. Both paled at the murderous glint that became apparent in the fifteen girls around him, including Phoebe and Zoe.  
The hunters made their way to the archery range after finishing their meals.  
"I think we can begin now."  
Artemis snapped her fingers, transforming both Percy and Bianca into squirrels.  
"The one who survives- I mean, the one who is caught last by the hunters wins. GO!"  
The two demigods-turned-squirrels scampered into the forest, wisely deciding to split up once they made their way into the green.  
Artemis decided to first focus on Bianca. The black-eyed squirrel seemed to be using her brains, she climbed onto the tallest tree she could find and decided to hide it out in a hollow. Artemis then shifted her attention to squirrel-Percy who seemed to be having much poorer luck than Bianca.  
First off, most of the hunters decided to follow Percy instead of Bianca. Adding salt to the wounds, some even managed to snag their bows before they began their chase.  
Percy swerved left and right, avoiding the maelstrom of arrows that tailed him. The green-eyed squirrel faked a turn to the left, turning right instead, he scampered up a tree, seemingly leaving the hunters behind.  
Artemis trained her focus back towards Bianca who seemed to be in a bit of a pickle. She had apparently wandered into to nest of a peregrine falcon, said mama bird currently chasing the terrified squirrel-Bianca.  
Bianca ran as fast as her small four legs allowed her to, trying her best to avoid the bird. Artemis, feeling bad for the girl, and deciding that falcons needn't be a part of this challenge, waved her hand and convinced the falcon that Bianca hadn't disturbed its nest.  
Bianca slowed down to a halt when she realized that the falcon wasn't following her anymore. She began to wander about, much more cautiously. Her safety wasn't very long however, because she was soon spotted by one Arya Stark.  
"There's one over there!"  
Half of the hunters broke away from the group and began following squirrel-Bianca.  
Squeaking as loud as she could, she ran the opposite way, hoping to lost the hunters.  
Artemis shifted back over to Percy to check on his progress, before finding a scene she hadn't been expecting.  
Percy had decided to take an alternative strategy from Bianca's, on any other hunter, for that matter. Instead of running away from the hunters, he jumped through the trees towards the group of hunters who hadn't left to chase Bianca. That wasn't the strange part. With him, about twenty other ground squirrels, and fifteen chipmunks bounced from tree to tree, while a squadron sparrow flew close to them, making their way towards the six hunters that were separated from the four that ran after Bianca.  
How the son of Poseidon had managed to befriend a scurry of squirrels, chipmunks and even sparrows, and assemble them into a makeshift army of the forest, Artemis would never know.  
The tiny force charged the hunters on three sides, taking them completely unexpected. Mia was first to be attacked, as a pair of squirrels landed on her face and dug their paws each of her cheeks respectively, scratching at her eyes. The girl screamed at the ferocity of the attacks on her face, screaming bloody murder. The other hunters turned to help, but each found themselves ambushed by a mixture of pecking sparrows, scratching and biting squirrels and acorn lobbing chipmunks.  
Squirrels rained down from the tree branches on, finding themselves on the hunters' heads and clothes, biting at their arms before any of them could flash out weapons. Daphne pulled out a dagger, only for a squirrel to bit her ear making the daughter of Aphrodite eek at the pain, dropping the silver blade on her toes, stabbing herself yet again. The barrage of random nuts and stones from the acorns only added to the utter confusing. More than not, the projectiles missed their targets, but nevertheless, prevented any regathering of order to the assaulted hunters. Sparrows to swoop in and peck wherever they could, and pulled arrows out of the hunters' grasp whenever they tried to aim.  
Artemis could only gape and watch with wide eyes as her hunters were made short work of by mere forest dwelling critters.  
By the time the forest army was done, the hunters were covered with scratches, and bruises, and many bleedings. All were on the knees exhausted, in barely held defensible poses.  
The critter army retreated, when it became evident, they won.  
That was when Rachel gained a maniacal glint in her eyes. Despite being one of the more injured of the group, she lunged forward, trapping the lone squirrel that had stayed in her hands. She stared into its eyes.  
"I caught him! I caught Percy!"  
The six other hunters cheered, sighed in relief and then collapsed onto the ground. Rachel, however was not careful enough when she caught Percy.  
"OW! HE BIT ME!" Squirrel-Percy scampered back into the forest, bringing the five hunters that were still on the ground to glare at her. Dejected, Rachel collapsed onto the ground beside them.  
"We'll… let… the others catch them," one of them said, the rest murmured small agreements.  
That was when Bianca ran past them. The exhausted hunters, of course wasn't able to catch her in time, and she was lost into the woods yet again.  
The four that were chasing Bianca emerged from the woods, looking as frustrated as ever. Then, they spied the group on the ground.  
Phoebe's eyes widened, looking at the scene with amazement. "What happened to you guys? It looks like you were attacked."  
Juliet shuddered, "Squirrels... So many squirrels..." Her expression was glazed over.  
Siva scoffed, "You got attacked by a bunch o' squirrels!"'  
Zoe narrowed her eyes, "So you got scratched up a bit, get up now. We've got ourselves some rodents to catch."  
Zoe ignored the groans that escaped the lips of the six downed girls.  
"Come on girls, first one to catch the squirrels gets exempted from laundry for a week."  
The six grumbled, but got to their feet. Daphne and Rachel bandaged their respective wounds. Mia drew her bow. Juliet and Cheryl stretched while Pacifica brushed the dirt off her parka.  
"Come on, we can't let them win! Let's go!"  
Another squeal reverberated through the forest, the hunters who had been attacked paled.  
"Nope, I don't care if I don't have to do laundry. Never again!"  
Cheryl dropped to the ground, soon afterwards followed by the rest of the five scratched up hunters.  
"Oh, come on, they couldn't 'ave been that bad, could they?" Siva rolled her eyes.  
"Umm... Siv?" Arya gulped, "You might want to turn around..."  
The Indian girl turned around, only to be bonked on the head with an acorn.  
"Hey, who did that?"  
Another squeal.  
"I think they did..."  
Arya gulped.  
The miniature army was back, but this time, instead of sparrows, they had falcons instead.  
"Um... Run?"  
Nodding at Siva's suggestion, the predators became the prey as Zoe, Phoebe, Arya and Siva ran away from Percy's Army.  
________________________________________  
Chapter 52: Horus  
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"Honestly, I'm dumbfounded. I know I'm new to the hunt and everything, but I'd thought I'd be able to leave you all to your own devices for two days?! Did I hear this right? Squirrels left you in this state?" Thalia chastised the other hunters.  
Zoe and the rest of the hunters stood around, their eyes wandering, as they avoided both Thalia's bewildered expression, and Artemis' questioning glance.  
"I am very disappointed with all of you," Artemis added, looking over the assembled hunters; all were rather scratched up and bruised.  
"And here, I thought the hunters were all highly skilled and trained fighters. The elite of the elite. Now I hear you guys succumbed to an attack of squirrels?" Thalia placed her hand on her forehead, over-exaggerating her amazement by the story, snickering at the hunters' collective embarrassment.  
"There were also Chipmunks…. Gods damned, nut lobbing devils…." Daphne tried to explain, which only caused the daughter of Zeus to burst into full blown laughter, which she had clearly been trying to avoid doing up till that point.  
Artemis on the other hand, wasn't as amused. "Squirrels. They were only squirrels. And you couldn't -"  
"But-"  
"No buts Zoe. No buts, any of you. You all were supposed to catch them, but instead you get defeated simple squirrels and chipmunks"  
Percy decided to cut in, "-and sparrows. Oh, and don't forgot falcons." He smiled mischievously, earning pointed glares from multiple huntresses. The son of Poseidon laughed, before continuing to pet the Peregrine that had bonded with him and was currently perched on his finger.  
"I go away from you guys for two days to pick up my stuff from camp, and you end up being attacked by squirrels," Thalia repeated, before choking from laughing too hard.  
Zoe, in turn, glared harshly at the daughter of Zeus.  
"Oh, they weren't attacked. Artemis sent them after us as part of our... Initiation, was it my lady?"  
Artemis rolled her eyes at Percy's words, "Clearly a mistake on my part. Although I must commend you on your leadership skills in the guise of a squirrel, although the hunters couldn't understand you, I must say, that speech you gave was rather impressive for you."  
Percy laughed good naturedly at that.  
"Maybe you should have stayed, you wouldn't be laughing then," Zoe grumbled, stoically. This only caused the blue-eyed huntress to laugh even harder, which in turn made Zoe glare harder.  
"At least we finally managed to catch them..." Phoebe said.  
Artemis stared pointedly at her. "And how long did that take?"  
Phoebe grumbled under her breath.  
"What was that? I couldn't hear you?"  
"Four hours."  
Thalia's eyes widened, "It took fifteen hunters four hours to catch two measly squirrels?!"  
Bianca cleared her throat, clearly miffed at being called a measly squirrel.  
"Err- Percy and Bianca turned-squirrels," Thalia rephrased, correcting herself.  
The aforementioned daughter of Hades nodded her affirmation and continued to look at Percy's falcon with jealousy.  
"Yeah, them and nineteen other demon squirrels from Hades."  
Bianca glared at Siva, who had been the one who had spoken. The Indian girl ignored her younger half-sister.  
"Let's not forget to mention those damned chipmunks and those gods-awful nuts!" Daphne said, comfortingly patting Mia's back, who seemed to be going into shock with flashbacks.  
"And those birds!"  
Percy's falcon squawked, as though it could understand Arya's speech. Said girl flinched at the sound.  
"Hey! Leave Horus out of this!" Percy yelled.  
Siva gave Percy a dead-pan expression, "You-you named your bird?"  
"-after an Egyptian god?" Phoebe continued.  
Percy looked at the girls, clearly offended. "Horus is not just a bird! He is my friend!"  
The normally rather aggressive bird nuzzles into Percy's neck, squawking at the two hunters who had dissed it.  
He stuck his tongue out at them, "More than you guys are at the very least."  
"Your falcon understands human speech?" Pacifica said, intrigued.  
Horus turned towards Pacifica and nodded. The blonde daughter of Apollo's eyes widened.  
"How?"  
The bird seemed to shrug its shoulders - err - wings. The hunters decided to leave the weird situation behind them.  
"Zoe, you and the hunters are going to have double chores for the rest of the week, dismissed," Artemis told. Not attempting to hide their groans of disappointment, the hunters dispersed, leaving only Artemis, Percy, Bianca, Thalia and Zoe in Artemis' tent.  
"You managed to tame an army of woodland creatures kelp head, what next?" Thalia asked the grinning son of Poseidon.  
Percy's smile wavered at the daughter of Zeus.  
"Oh, I dunno, world domination?"  
Thalia burst into laughter.  
"Speaking of taking an army of woodland creatures, how exactly did you manage to do that, Percy?" Zoe interjected, wholly curious about how the boy before her managed such a feat.  
Percy looked her dead in the eyes before answering, "I just asked."  
Zoe narrowed her eyes. "You speak squirrel?"  
Percy rolled his eyes, "Yeah, Falcon too."  
He turned to his pet bird, before gave a loud squawk, startling the feathers from Horus. The falcon shook its head disapprovingly.  
"That was a joke," the boy explained, "I don't speak falcon. Mais je parle un peu de français."  
Thalia stared at Percy, "Since when do you speak French?"  
Percy shrugged, "I had to study a bit in an old school before I was kicked out. English was basically a foreign language with dyslexia. French wasn't much harder."  
Thalia nodded her head in understanding, knowing the struggles of dyslexia. Zoe however, was not about to let up on gaining the information she desired...  
"But how did you manage to get them to gang up on us?"  
Percy made a shushing motion, "Shh... Secrets of the trade."  
At that moment, Zoe wanted to strangle Percy Jackson to death.  
________________________________________  
"Percy! No animals on the table!"  
Percy groaned, "But Artemis-"  
The goddess cut him off, "No words from you. Just be grateful that I let you keep your bird-" Horus squawked. "-Horus, with us in the hunt. But he will not be eating with us on the table. If you wish to feed him, you may do so elsewhere."  
Zoe knew that Artemis' actions were probably because of how a few girls were seated low, nearly hiding from the bird and Percy. It seems, many had developed a (hopefully temporary) irrational fear of the two."  
Percy grumbled under his breath, "Fine," he conceded.  
Artemis beamed, "Good. Now finish your lunch-" She looked towards the setting sun. "-We might be running a little late," the goddess glared at Percy who sheepishly rubbed the back of his head, "- but we aren't going to skip after lunch training. I don't care if it becomes tomorrow, you girls aren't going to bed until all of you are done with your duties."  
The hunters, including Percy groaned at that.  
"Oh, don't give me that, you've brought this upon yourselves when you took four hours to capture two squirrels."  
Grumbling under their breaths, the hunters continued to shovel their food into their mouths.  
Zoe was no exception, she was exhausted and covered with scratches, all she wanted to do was finish her late lunch and collapse into the bed in her tent.  
She took a glance at Percy, who was no longer seated next to her, and had instead wandered off towards the archery range to feed Horus.  
If what Artemis had said earlier was right, then Horus was the same peregrine falcon that had tried to eat Bianca before Artemis cast a spell on it to calm it down. They seemed to have made peace by now though. After the hunters had finally managed to stop the onslaught of squirrel attacks, most the animals had dispersed into the forest but one falcon stayed, circling around the hunters threateningly.  
Artemis of course, came to their rescue and willed the falcon to fly away, which it did, only to return in a few minutes, seemingly able to recognize Percy in his human form.  
The falcon didn't allow anyone else near it, but seemed to be attached to Percy. How the bird understood English, however, she had no idea, although she suspected that Artemis might have had something to do with it.  
Zoe looked down at her plate. She was nearly done with her lunch consisting of the previous day's leftovers. Phoebe's venison was unsurprisingly delicious even though it was nearly a day old.  
Zoe's vision trailed back to the raven-haired boy that had managed to capture her heart after over three thousand two hundred and forty-two years of dormancy since she had her heart broken by Heracles.  
Even if she couldn't admit it to others, she could admit it to herself. She loved Percy Jackson.  
Zoe's eyes met with his sea green orbs and she began to get butterflies in her stomach. She wondered what it would be like to kiss the boy. Her face began to resemble a tomato at that point. He would be her first.  
Zoe almost missed the playful glint in Artemis' silver eyes.  
The goddess was reading her mind!  
"Of course, I am Zoe, this is some golden blackmail material."  
Sometimes she loved how telepathy only works between two people, she would have been so embarrassed if Artemis would have said the words aloud.  
"Alright girls, let's go to the archery range where Percy is waiting-" Horus, the little attention-hog that he was, squawked. Artemis rolled her eyes, “Percy and Horus are waiting."  
Mia cheered, "Gods, I've been dying to use my bow! Let's shoot something!"  
________________________________________  
Chapter 53: Lake  
________________________________________  
"You all are crazy!" Bianca exclaimed, as she stubbornly pushed herself against the bark of a tree. "There is absolutely no way I am going to do this."  
Rachel Berry sighed at the daughter of Hades' tenacity. Bianca really did not want to go swim. "Come on, you'll be fine. We're just going for a swim."  
"Across Lake Ontario?!" Bianca moaned, as she stared out onto the chilling expanse of navy-blue water. Waves walloped and swooshed onto the sands of Mississauga Beach. Despite the clear blue skies and the unusually high sun, the beach was vacant.  
Bianca suspected that her lady Artemis had something to do with it.  
The air was also very frigid. Winds howled across the water like a legion of incoming ghosts. On the horizon, Bianca could barely make out wisps of the Toronto skyline on the horizon.  
"Yes, Lake Ontario," Rachel answered, rolling her eyes. "Don't worry, we do it every year. At least, that's what the other hunters told me, it's gonna be my first time too."  
Artemis' powers gave the hunters enhanced physical abilities, but it was important to stay in tip-top shape. Apparently, every year, the Hunters would take part in the Lake Ontario challenge. Swim the 52 km length between Niagara-on-the-Lake all the way to Toronto. To add to the challenge, Artemis instructed the hunters to do it during early Spring, when the water was still near freezing.  
Rachel pulled at the daughter of Hades to get up, but Bianca stood her ground.  
"I am not going to swim out on the lake! It's like the middle of winter!" Bianca said, shivering in her swimsuit. "It's… Cold!"  
"First of all, it's early spring. Second of all, didn't you live in Maine?" Rachel raised an eyebrow in question. "Shouldn't you be used to the cold?"  
"I was only there for a semester," Bianca protested, pulling her knees into her chest. "And I never had to swim outside! Much less 52 kilometers into Canada!"  
Rachel laughed. "We're already in Canada. Don't worry about it, the swim is easier than it sounds."  
"How would you know?" Bianca mumbled, shaking her head.  
"Trust me."  
Rachel leaned in. She proceeded to point down along the beach towards where the rest of the hunters were preparing to swim. In the midst of them, a certain daughter of Zeus was, with difficulty, trying to wiggle on her swim cap. "Come on… Thalia's going too and she looks awfully cute in that electric blue swimsuit of hers..."  
Rachel winked not-so-subtly.  
Bianca unwillingly perked at the thought of seeing the said daughter of Zeus in her swim wear, and Rachel smirked.  
"Gotcha?" Rachel laughed. Bianca's face reddened in embarrassment at the prospect of anyone else figuring out her crush.  
"Who else knows?" Bianca asked.  
Rachel smirked. "Just me… for now."  
Bianca gulped.  
"How about we make a deal," Rachel smiled mischievously, "If you at least try swimming the length with us…"  
Bianca gaped, interrupting the shorter brunette, "You wouldn't!"  
Rachel only shrugged. "Your fate rests upon your choice."  
Bianca's shoulders slumped at the words, in defeat.  
"Oh, don't be like that. It's actually easier than it sounds," Rachel promised. "Come on, the others are waiting, and Thalia looks absolutely smokin'!"  
Bianca's expression reddened even more, before glaring at Rachel. Rachel winked mockingly back.  
As they made their way to where the rest of the hunters were at, Percy greeted them with a melancholic smile.  
"You two ready?" Percy smiled. "Zoe sent me to see what was taking so long."  
"Yeah, we're fine," Rachel answered for them. Rachel gave Bianca a slight wink. "I was just feeling queasy."  
"You sure you good?" Percy asked, concerned. "It's a long swim."  
Rachel batted her eyes at the son of Poseidon. "I'm fine, this ain't my first rodeo Perce. You don't need to save me."  
Percy’s smile quivered. He looked back to the rest of the hunters. "I doubt any of you need me on lifeguard duty. Yet, here I am."  
"The swim would be no challenge for you, Percy," Rachel pointed out. "There'd be no point for you to take the swim."  
Percy pouted.  
"Come on," Zoe Nightshade yelled at them, "We're about to go."  
The three made their way to the rest of the hunters where they assimilated into the crowd. Bianca tried to stay on the fringes of the group, but that only attracted the attention of the one person she had been avoiding: Thalia Grace.  
"Di-Angelo," Thalia called out to Bianca, running over across the sand, clad with tight swimwear which nicely complimented her curves. "Want to be swimming buddies?"  
Bianca paled and a large set of scenarios played through her head. Most included her absolutely embarrassing and possibly wetting herself in front of Thalia on the beach. She was about to flee, when Thalia caught her by the arm, knocking her out of her reverie.  
"Bianca, you with me?" Thalia asked.  
"Uh... sure," Bianca answered, stammering. She was sweating a storm. It had been freezing a few moments ago, why was it suddenly so hot?  
Thalia grinned at her answer, punching her playfully on the shoulder. "Great!"  
What had she just agreed to?  
"Um, what are swimming buddies for again?" Bianca whispered.  
"We swim together, keep an eye on each other and help if the other is drowning and whatnot," Thalia frowned, before noticing how anxious Bianca was. Her lightning blue eyes rolled over her. "Hey, you alright? You look a bit feverish."  
"I… uh… fine," Bianca stammered. When did it become so hard to talk to her?  
Thalia looked concerned, but decided not to comment. "So, you missed the meeting and stuff. Nothing much, just some tips on how not to die from Hypothermia or exhaustion. Let's see… keep pace! It's a long ass swim. 32 miles or something, and while that's an easy jog, swimming it I'm told is harder, especially with the wind fighting against us. I volunteered to slow down the winds, but apparently everyone's excited for an extra challenge."  
Bianca internally groaned.  
"We also have to make sure to always stay moving. If we stop, we'll freeze to death. That's why they're doing swimming buddies. Someone's there to warm up against you if you need it."  
Bianca almost fainted. From excitement or embarrassment of the idea of being swimming buddies with Thalia and snuggling up against her during their swim…  
"Oh, look, everyone's already gone," Thalia pointed out, as Zoe and Phoebe were the last duo the jump in. Bianca paled, realizing it was too late to back out now.  
The daughter of Zeus pulled her along, and they jumped into the water, and the cold consumed them.  
________________________________________  
Confession time: Thalia did not know how to swim.  
Of course, she had been determined not to reveal the fact, but in hindsight, it would've probably been a better to get a quick lesson from Bianca before they jumped in. She hoped it she could go by with just copying Bianca's strokes or this swim was going to be a very short one.  
The water was absolutely cold. Bubbles swirled around her, and she surfaced gasping. Bianca followed suit moments later, before turning towards the opposite direction from the shore and started her strokes. Thalia gazed at the daughter of Hades' flowing movements, and she wondered if Bianca swam professionally in her spare time. Realizing she was being left behind, she pushed herself to swim. And swim… Well, she tried her best.  
She struggled to keep pace with Bianca, barely keeping her swimming partner within sight. It was almost like Bianca was trying to run away from her.  
Thalia pushed forward, her arms clumsily swinging around. She thanked the extra endurance and strength, or else she would've probably sunken by now.  
It wasn't for a while until she caught up to Bianca who was waiting for her, swimming in place. She was absolutely red, but Thalia wasn't sure if it was from the cold or from embarrassment of her leaving Thalia behind.  
"So-Sorry," Bianca stammered, her teeth shivering as the two floated. "I wasn't paying attention."  
Thalia laughed. "No problem. Sorry about being slow. I haven't swum in so long. Probably a bit rusty."  
"It's fine. I'm a little rusty as well."  
"Rusty? I'd like to see you swim when you're at top performance!"  
Bianca grimaced at the praise. "I'm not that good."  
Thalia bit her lip. "Do you… you think you could give me lessons? After this, of course."  
For a moment, Thalia thought she saw a horrified expression on Bianca's face, but it disappeared as quickly as it came.  
"Uh… yeah. I uh, mean sure." Bianca stumbled.  
________________________________________  
Chapter 54: Monster  
________________________________________  
Did Percy appreciate the fact that the hunters had pretty much sidelined him?  
No, he didn't. Not really.  
It had been a request from Artemis. The swim was meant to be a challenge to the hunters - to make sure their skills and bodies were honed. But for Percy, the swim would be anything but a challenge. If anything, he'd probably feel more energized AFTER the swim. Artemis had pointed that out, and then told him she'd rather have him watch over the hunters. To keep an eye on them.  
Percy sighed. He found his job rather meaningless. The hunters have done this challenge as a routine thing for many years already, and they'd never had the need for a lifeguard before, why now?  
He also suspected if any of the hunters did need help, they'd rather drown than have Percy rescue them. Either way, he had to at least pretend he wanted to do his job.  
Something cool about being a son of Poseidon: With little practice, you can walk on water. He skipped along the surface of the water, letting the water below him almost carry the weight of his feet forward with each stride. He was running along the swim route, half his attention placed at the pairs of hunters he danced past. The other half, was of course, focused on Horus which continued to squawk in his ear with persistence.  
SQUAWK! Horus squawked, pecking at Percy's shoulder.  
"I know you're hungry Horus. I am too, but I gotta pay attention to the hunters," Percy told.  
SQUAWK!  
"I know you don't like them, but you don't have to be so mean about it," Percy laughed.  
SQUAWK!  
"Horus…"  
SQUAWK!  
"Dude, don't bring my love life into this. Zoe and I-"  
SQUAWK!  
"It's not like that! I'm not choosing her over you! There's nothing even there!"  
SQUAWK SQUAWK!  
"No!"  
SQUAWK SQUAWK!  
"I'll get you a nice juicy rat once we get back…" Percy tried. "With soy sauce, just how you like it."  
SQUAWK!  
"No, I am not!  
SQUAWK SQUAWK!  
"Fine," Percy mumbled. "TWO rats! You happy?"  
Horus fluttered his feathers, in obvious contentment.  
"Great," Percy sighed, "Now you're going to get spoiled."  
Horus shrugged his wings.  
"Dude, I-" Percy started before he sensed something. He stopped in his tracks, and did a 180. "Zoe! She's in trouble!"  
________________________________________  
Swimming was one of Zoe Nightshade's most favorite past times. She rarely had the chance to do it often. The hunters were always on the move, busy hunting and wandering.  
As her arms swung in continuing cycles, her feet behind her paddling, she couldn't help feeling high from the adrenaline that pulsed through her. Her lungs gasping for air each time her mouth resurfaced; her heart beating with quickened pace. She absolutely adored the water, a fact that may or may not be attributed to her mother being the water nymph, Pleione.  
The chilling, yet comforting waves of Lake Ontario relieved her if her troubles and she felt herself get lost in the cool and comforting embrace of the soft waves.  
About three-fourths of the way, she estimated. She and Phoebe were three-fourths of the way…  
She stopped immediately when she realized Phoebe was not at her side. Her head resurfaced and she swung her head around looking for her friend.  
No one.  
They'd must've separated while she was lost in thought. It was not the first time that a pair got separated from each other, but for the over sixty years that they'd been doing the annual event, no one has died. Passed out due to cold or lack of oxygen, sure. But never died.  
Zoe frowned. She could already feel her legs begin to tingle - her blood slowing in circulation. She'd have to keep moving…  
That's when a dark shadow crossed the periphery of her vision. She immediately turned towards it, and her eyes widened.  
Her slow mind was able to come up with three words before everything happened at once.  
Big monster, with teeth.  
Okay, that was four words, but that shows how paralyzed her mind was.  
The lake monster, a fifty-foot-long serpent-like creature with five eyes and a mouth with dozens of rows of teeth loomed above her, casting a shadow. It then surged forward at her, and she immediately regretted not having her weapons with her. (Her swim wear had no pockets.)  
She dodged, pushing herself to the side just in time to see the monster crash into the water. It roared in anger.  
"Shit," she said. She did not like her chances without being armed, and she doubted she would outswim the thing.  
The monster had the same idea, knowing Zoe was vulnerable and swung back around at her, snapping its wide jaws at her.  
The hunter was paralyzed with fear. Was this how she was going to end up dying? By some random sea monster in the middle of a lake which wasn't supposed to have a monster in it?  
No.  
This couldn't be the end. She wasn't one to give up so easy.  
She thrust herself forward, swing her arms and kicking her legs wildly in a blind panic to get away from the beast.  
"Hey! Bait breath!"  
Zoe paused. She knew that voice (and sarcastic undertone).  
With a loud squawk, Horus swooped low, pecking and clawing at the monster with his beak and talons.  
While the monster was distracted, Percy charged at it, Anaklusmos uncapped.  
The sea monster cowered at the sight of the son of the sea god. Percy leapt onto the beast, stabbing at it with his mystical bronze sword.  
Zoe could only watch in mute amazement as the son of Poseidon made short work of the beast.  
The beast dissolved into a shower of golden dust, but instead of dispersing into the winds, the dust simply vanished.  
Percy flipped his moderately long raven black hair, "Pfft. Serves you right for picking on Zoe."  
The hunter rolled her eyes at the boy's antics.  
Percy approached Zoe, extending an arm for her to take.  
"Come on, let's get you outta here."  
Zoe smiled up at the boy. Perhaps it was symbolic of something, but Zoe got a certain sense of familiarity when she felt her palm gently enclosed within the larger hands of the son of Poseidon.  
"You're safe now." Zoe felt herself get lost within the green orbs of the demigod before her. The moment was rudely interrupted by a loud squawk as Horus was hit out of the sky, landing roughly into the pale waters below.  
"HORUS!"  
Percy let go of Zoe, rushing towards his fallen falcon.  
Picking the bird off the water's surface, the boy checked for any signs of life. He sighed in relief when he felt the faint heartbeat of the bird.  
A deep growl made Percy freeze in his tracks.  
From the waters below him, a monster, ten times the size of the one before spring out of the water surface, swallowing the boy whole.  
Zoe's eyes widened. "Percy!"  
The waves around her began to get rougher, lashing out in all directions.  
Zoe felt a lurch in her gut, and swiftly overcame her trance-like state. Her body walked forward, her feet still supported by the water despite Percy being eaten. Her body felt like it was a puppet, being controlled by something greater than herself. But that wasn't true, this was all her. It was what she had to do in order to save the one she loved.  
She had to do something to save the boy. Her mind was on autopilot, her vision tunneled, the only thing she could observe was the monster that ate her Percy.  
Everything after that became fuzzy, she could barely remember what had happened before she blacked out into darkness. What she did remember however, was a scream of pure rage and two hands made of water rising out of the lake, gripping the two sides of the monster, and ripping it in half.  
________________________________________  
Artemis was nervous, she hadn't expected the events that had transpired to transpire. Her initial plan was to give her lieutenant a little scare so that Percy could come to her rescue. The plan she had set up with Phoebe was perfect, the daughter of Ares would separate from the daughter of Atlas and Artemis would conjure up a little illusion for the two of them.  
What the goddess did not expect, was the real thing, which was supposed to be in hibernation, to jump out of the lake and swallowed Percy whole.  
What was even more surprising was that Zoe somehow managed to manipulate to water around her to tear the monster in two. Artemis immediately teleported over to her unconscious form and picked her up. Percy swam up to the surface, covered in monster slime and stomach fluids. Horus fluttered away from him, fortunately, having regained consciousness.  
"Ugh. What happened?" he moaned, clutching his head. His vision seemed to clear. "Zoe!"  
He ran up to the goddess, a worried expression plaguing his features, "Is she okay? What happened?"  
Artemis reassured him, "She'll be fine. When you were swallowed, Zoe somehow managed to control the water around her and..." The goddess gestured around her.  
Percy swiveled his head around, grimacing at the monster guys that surrounded them, slowly sinking below the surface.  
"I didn't know she had hydrokinesis too."  
Artemis sighed, "Neither did I, and I think that she didn't know either."  
Artemis paused before continuing, "Get cleaned up, let's get back to the rest of the hunters."  
Percy nodded, submerging himself into the lake to get the slobber off himself. "Let's go."  
Artemis teleported themselves away from the lake, and towards where the rest of the hunters were waiting.  
________________________________________  
Phoebe was beginning to get worried, Artemis, Percy and Zoe hadn't made it back yet. She had expected them back exactly forty-three minutes ago, and she could feel the other hunters grow restless. She could only hope that her little prank with Artemis hadn't gone too far.  
Just then, Artemis flashed in, holding an unconscious Zoe and a worried looking Percy. Not to forget, Horus, who perched on the son of Poseidon's shoulder, looking shook but otherwise alright.  
"What happened?!"  
Phoebe rushed towards them as fast as she could. She couldn't help but feel responsible for the condition of her sister in all but blood.  
"I'll explain later. Hunters, set up the infirmary. Pacifica, diagnosis."  
Artemis' worried eyes betrayed her calm demeanor, Phoebe knew that the goddess was immensely worried for her surrogate daughter and best friend.  
Pacifica placed her palm on Zoe's forehead. The appendage began to glow with a pale, golden light.  
"Exhaustion," Pacifica sighed, "She should be up in a couple of hours. The glowing continued, "A slight case of hypothermia, she needs to be kept warm. Any volunteers?"  
Percy immediately perked up, "I'll do it."  
The hunters stirred at the thought, but before they could comment, Artemis cut them off, "Alright, that's the plan. Hunters, get a move on!"  
It took the hunters exactly seventeen minutes and twenty-three seconds to set up camp. Horus circled around the girls, squawking at them so that they would hurry up. The infirmary, of course, was first to go up, Percy and the unconscious Zoe were placed in, and the hunters then proceeded to set up the remaining tents. Horus flew into the forest, probably to quench his thirst for juicy rats.  
Phoebe approached Artemis' tent after the setup, the Athena quarter of her was dying to know what had happened to Zoe.  
"Come in Phoebe." The daughter of Ares was not surprised that Artemis knew she was approaching, the moon goddess seemed to know the sounds of each of her Hunter's footsteps by heart.  
"I know why you're here, " she gestured to close the tent, which Phoebe complied with.  
"Milady, what happened-"  
Artemis cut her off with a motion for her to stop talking. "The plan went fine, Percy defeated the illusion, but then the real thing came up and swallowed Percy whole."  
Phoebe gasped.  
"Zoe seemed to black out, her eyes had gone white and a pale blue aura began to surround her. She yelled with rage and two fists made of water arise from the lake." Phoebe listened on, too intrigued to interrupt the goddess. "The hands grabbed the two sides of the monster and ripped it in half. Exerting that kind of power for the first time must have drained Zoe completely."  
Phoebe's jaw dropped, "But how?"  
Artemis shrugged, a look of growing concern growing on her face. "Perhaps it was her mother, who was a water nymph, or perhaps it was Lord Poseidon looking out for his son. Perhaps both…"  
Phoebe let the idea sink in.  
________________________________________  
Rachel was worried for Zoe, after she had completed her swim with Arya as her partner, Zoe was the only one of the hunters that hadn't made it back yet.  
Once Artemis had arrived with an unconscious Zoe, Rachel was curious, more than worried as to what had happened to her lieutenant.  
Don't get her wrong, she was worried for the well-being of the daughter of Atlas, but her sheer curiosity overcame her sense of empathy.  
Initially she had wanted to try and listen in on the conversation between Artemis and Phoebe, but she decided against it. She wasn't one to betray the privacy of her lady.  
She, instead went to the infirmary to check up on Percy and Zoe.  
The pushed the flap away and stepped into the large tent. Only one bed was set up, with an unconscious Zoe placed in it. Beside her, was Percy, who had her locked in a firm embrace. He was asleep, but a worried expression plagued his sleeping visage.  
Horus perched himself on the table beside the two, acting as a makeshift guard for the two.  
The falcon, of course was the first to notice Rachel, seeing as the other two occupants of the tent were either knocked out or asleep.  
He turned towards her and tilted his head to the left, seemingly trying to analyze her. He clearly recognized her as not being a threat, but didn't seem to be entirely sure.  
Rachel did the same, mimicking his moves.  
The bird had pointed wings and a long tail, he had a rather distinct look with a blue-gray hood above with barred underparts and a dark head with thick sideburns. His chest was unmarked. His left leg was wrapped up with a bandage, but it didn't seem to impede his movement too much. Rachel could only assume that Percy had been the one to tie the bandage, seeing as the bird wouldn't really let anyone else nearby.  
Finally deciding that Rachel wasn't a threat, Horus relaxed. The girl approached the bird with tentative steps. The dark eyes of the falcon stared back of her with intensity.  
"H-hey."  
Horus' eyes narrowed, but kept his gaze affixed on her.  
"Is it alright if I sit here with you?"  
The falcon nodded.  
Rachel sat on the chair, "Do you know what happened to her?"  
Horus shrugged, pretending to fall over.  
"You were unconscious?"  
The bird nodded.  
"Oh..."  
It was truly bizarre, yet comforting to be talking to a bird who could understand her speech.  
"So... You tried to eat Bianca?"  
Horus nodded, but mirth was in his eyes.  
"But don't peregrines usually eat smaller birds, not squirrels?"  
Horus shrugged his wings, the mirthful glint still not leaving his eyes.  
The bird suddenly perked up, taking flight, he looked back, asking Rachel to follow him.  
The girl did so, following Horus into the woods that surrounded them.  
The falcon slowed down so the girl could keep Pace with him.  
Horus led her to a cliff edge, overlooking Lake Ontario.  
"You aren't going to push me off the cliff, right? That would be very unwise because I'm Percy's friend.  
The bird gave her a dead-pan expression.  
"Never mind."  
The falcon landed near the edge, hopping over to a shallow depression within the vegetation. Inside the scrape were 4 creamy to brownish eggs dotted with red and brown spots.  
The rim around the scrape prevented the eggs from rolling out, also providing insulation and camouflage for the eggs.  
Rachel gasped.  
"Are they yours?"  
Horus nodded, backing into the nest and settling down to incubate the eggs. Rachel assumed that his mate had probably gone hunting, and he had the responsibility of incubating the eggs.  
Just then, a bird landed beside Rachel, scaring the crap out of her. The bird was a peregrine falcon too, but larger than Horus. Must have been the mate. She held the corpse if a dead pigeon within her large beak.  
The falcon squawked at her threateningly, but did not approach her. Horus squawked in response, making the larger bird stand down.  
"Your mate?"  
Horus nodded.  
"Damn."

________________________________________  
Chapter 55: Infirmary  
________________________________________  
Zoe groaned. She couldn't remember anything that had happened.  
She felt exhausted. Her back lay flush with the bed underneath; her legs were raised a few inches from the rest of her body. She was covered with a warm blanket. Her eyelids felt heavy, she had no mood to open them unless absolutely necessary.  
She tried to squirm into a more comfortable position, hugging her pillow tighter; its rhythmic up and down movements comforting her.  
Her eyes fluttered open. Last time she checked, pillows weren't supposed to move. Her vision was greeted with the bare chest of a male, whom she was clutched onto. Panicking, she attempted to recoil away from the body, fearing the worst. She was in an unknown bed with a shirtless boy, unable to recall any past events. Had she been drugged? She had no idea.  
Surprisingly, she felt her movements restrained. Her gaze scanned lower, only to be met with strong arms wrapped around her waist.  
She began to hyperventilate, what had happened? She was in the embrace of a random boy and her memory was failing her. She began to squirm, trying her best to get away from the near-naked form of the person beside her.  
What was her lady going to think? Zoe was appalled at even the thought.  
After a bout of fitful movement, the boy began to stir. His grip loosened.  
It was the perfect opportunity, Zoe rolled away from the bed, landing on her back on the soft, carpeted floor.  
Her vision was trained upwards. The roof of wherever she was looked incredibly familiar. She was in a tent and not a building, which was the first thing she observed. The shade of the white, sloped roof seemed to be at the tip of her tongue, but she couldn't quite place where she had seen that roof before.  
She heard a groan from the bed she had just rolled off of. Suddenly on high alert, she shot to her feet, only to double over in pain.  
"Zoe!" The voice seemed to be so very familiar. Coughs began to erupt from her dry chest.  
The same tender voice spoke up again, closer this time, "Here, drink."  
Her vision was blurred out; she could make out the vague silhouette of the man who was obviously the one who was talking to her. She didn't know what came over her, she opened her mouth like an ass and let the possibly, maybe rapist pour a liquid into her mouth.  
She instantly felt better. It was nectar. The sweet liquid soothed her wounds as the taste of coffee washed through her system. Her vision began to clear. Blinking rapidly, her vision met with the man before her.  
She blushed heavily, it was Percy. Zoe looked around; she was in the hunters' infirmary. She breathed a sigh of relief; she hadn't been kidnapped, drugged, and/or raped.  
Her memory began to return to her.  
She remembered the lake, Her, having lost her way from Phoebe and being attacked by some sea monster, Percy saving her, Him being eaten by another beast that was at least ten times as large as the one before. Then her memories began to grow fuzzy, she remembered screaming in rage, and then two hands made of water ripping the monster in half. Was that her doing?  
Zoe began to feel a cool draft of wind brush against her skin.  
She blushed when she realized that she wasn't wearing any clothes, save for her silver undergarments, consisting of a silver sports bra and black boxers.  
Her blush intensified when she realized that she had been in bed with Percy, both being practically naked. While she knew deep down that nothing had happened between them ("yet", her mind supplied), she couldn't help but wonder what it would be like... To lay with the boy in an intimate way.  
"Zoe, are you alright? You look kinda red." The huntress shook her head violently to clear her dirty thoughts. Nope. She was not thinking straight. She was a hunter of Artemis; she wasn't supposed to be thinking such thoughts. '  
And you weren't supposed to fall in love either, look where you are now. Her mind supplied to her once again.  
"I-I'm fine. What happened?" Percy gestured for her to take a seat on the bed, a request that she complied with.  
"When I was," he cleared his throat, "Swallowed by the monster, you uh- controlled the water around you and managed to kill it. I uh- wasn't the one to see you do this, because I was in the belly of the monster, but Artemis saw you make two hands out of the water and rip the monster in half." Percy rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, avoiding her gaze.  
Zoe remained quiet, so it hadn't been a dream. She really did end up killing the monster by controlling water.  
"Um - Artemis said that she was going to check with my dad, if he had done anything." Zoe nodded, that made sense, Lord Poseidon was the lord of the seas, and of course he would save his only halfblooded son from being eaten. "So, uh... yeah."  
Zoe noticed that the boy was finding in quite difficult to frame proper sentences. The hunter had no clue as to why that was.  
Another breeze hit her exposed skin. Oh yeah...  
"Um... here are your clothes. Put them on."  
Zoe smirked. It was teasing time. "And you waited until now to give them to me? Did you like what you see that much?"  
She didn't know what came over her, but she ended the sentence with a wink, which made Percy's words get stuck in his mouth. "Th-That wasn't the reason!" He choked out, "I just uh... forgot..."  
Zoe raised an eyebrow.  
"In case you have forgotten, I was just recently eaten by a sea monster. My memory isn't that great yet."  
Zoe rolled her eyes, what did being eaten have to do with memory loss. "Just admit it Jackson, you're just like all the other male pigs in this world." Zoe pretended to scoff, she knew, of course that Percy was just so much better than the other men in the world, but she felt justified a little teasing here and there.  
"Wa-What! No!"  
Zoe laughed at his flustered expression.  
"Alright you two, if you're done flirting, you’re just in time for lunch, chop-chop."  
Zoe's head snapped towards the source of the voice. It was a snickering Phoebe at the entrance of the infirmary.  
"We weren't flirting!" Zoe and Percy said at the same time.  
Phoebe rolled her eyes, "Whatever you say, you two." She walked away from them, leaving the two near-naked hunters alone in the tent once again.  
"We should probably put out clothes on…."  
Zoe nodded at the suggestion, "Yeah, we should."  
Percy mumbled a thank you, and scrambled away as he scrounged for his clothes. Zoe looked toward him to see if he kept his eyes off of her, but the action seemed futile, with how much time they had spent together undressed. In the deep and dark recesses of her mind, she almost hoped that the boy was looking at her, but she did not allow this thought to eat away at her. The thought sounded wrong. Shaking her head to clear her mind, she fully focused herself on reacquainting herself with her hunters' parka.  
After they re-dressed themselves, they escaped from the infirmary which was getting a bit claustrophobic for her taste. The open Canadian air which filled her lungs was far more towards her tastes.  
Zoe heard her stomach grumble, she hadn't eaten since before the lake and she was completely famished.

________________________________________  
Chapter 56: Gay  
________________________________________  
Bianca was eating her lunch with the rest of the hunters when Phoebe pulled her off to the side.  
"Bianca, you must come with me," Phoebe whispered to her, ushering her away from the other hunters. "Lady Artemis wants to see you immediately."  
Bianca set her fork down and looked beside her, to Thalia who had a worried expression on her features, probably for Bianca's sake but gave her an encouraging thumbs up.  
"Yes, uh, okay," Bianca said, stumbling off the bench and grabbing her tray. She hoped she wasn't in trouble.  
"That won't be necessary. The meeting will be quick. It's just… personal advice she wants to give you. New paths, she had called it."  
Bianca bit her lip, but set her plate back down, and followed Phoebe to Artemis' tent. Many of the fellow hunters gave her curious glances as they watch Phoebe lead Bianca away. The pale skinned girl's eye met with Thalia's who looked on with a sense of apprehension.  
What was happening?  
Phoebe held open the door, letting a scampering daughter of Hades in.  
Artemis was lying on her hammock, gazing into at a cloud of mist, which Bianca recognized was an Iris Message. Before she had the correct angle to peer in however, the Goddess of the Hunt slashed away the mirage.  
"Bianca Di-Angelo. Excellent. We have much to discuss about your future."  
"Uhh, we do? I mean, yes milady! Of course," Bianca said quickly nodding.  
Artemis gave a melancholic wisp of a smile before turning to Phoebe with a stern expression. "I'd like this meeting to be private, Phoebe. Please make sure we aren't disturbed."  
Phoebe quickly nodded, before filing out.  
There was a moment of silence, as the daughter of Hades stood in the scrutiny of the goddess of the Hunt.  
After a pregnant pause, the silence was broken with: "So, you like that Thalia Grace, don't you?"  
Bianca gasped; sweat began to bead down her forehead.  
"Uhh, umm." She stammered, staring at her shoes. She couldn't match the goddess' gaze. For a second, she thought to possible lie to the goddess but that seemed like a terribly bad idea. Finally, she said "Yes. Did Rachel tell you?  
Artemis shook her head, her auburn curls bouncing as they followed her bobbing head. "Do you trust Rachel so little, girl. It was not she who told me, I have simply observed. While I try my best at being grounded to this plane of existence, you must not forget that I am also a goddess. I can read minds Bianca, and yours is like a book."  
Artemis gazed over her with a piercing gaze that tore into her soul.  
"I want to let you know, while the Hunt does not tolerate any form of romantic relationship whether it be with a man, or otherwise-,"  
Bianca looked down shivering at the cold words. She had not expecting this, but then again, she wasn't sure what to expect once Artemis found out.  
"I'll try to -"  
Artemis looked at her, frowning sadly. ""You did not let me finish, my dear. While that is usually the case, there have been certain key exceptions by my decree. You have fallen too hard into Aphrodite's hold for me to be able to convince your mind. It wouldn't be all right if I force you to suppress your emotions."  
"Milady, I -"  
Artemis regarded Bianca with interest. "I must confess, I've been playing Aphrodite's game too, lately. More than any virgin goddess should ever. Considering Percy and Zoe's -"  
"Wait, Percy and Zoe are together?"  
"Of course not. I never said such a thing. Back on topic, following the laws I've set and followed for the past few millennia I could exile you. Of course, as Olympus decrees, I must accept you and train you as the prophecy closes upon us. You might not be a hunter any longer, but your growth still falls upon me as your mentor and guardian."  
Bianca was at a loss for words, she wasn't entirely sure what she could say that wouldn't end up with her turned into an animal.  
"You mock me, Bianca. I'm not going to turn you into an animal. Well, not since that whole squirrel incident," The goddess allowed a chuckle to escape her lips, "Return to your meal, daughter of Hades. I simply wanted to hear the truth from your own lips. Expect another summons before the end of the day. We will discuss this more then, Olympus calls me."  
The girl rapidly nodded, "Yes milady, thank you milady."  
"Know this Bianca, I am not being forced to train you, I have chosen to take you with me, because you showed promise as a hunter. Romantics aside, you still very much do. Perhaps once the prophecy has passed, you will return to me to become a fully-fledged hunter."  
"But Thalia-"  
Artemis shook her head, hushing her words, "Not now. Await your summons later today."  
Bianca did not need any convincing. She scampered away from the goddess' tent, eager to return to her meal and try to forget about the entire ordeal. She stalked her way back to the table, most of the other hunters had completed their meal and had left the table, but there was one huntress left, which immediately caught sight of her once the dining area came into view.  
Thalia had waited for her, her own plate left untouched since she had left.  
"Hey, thought I should wait for you. Come on, you must be hungry."  
Bianca smiled at the object of her affection, if nothing else; she would cherish the daughter of Zeus as being one of her closest friends.  
________________________________________  
It was probably late evening by then and Bianca was in her tent, relaxing in her hammock, a laptop in her hands. While the hunters lived and survived in the wild, Artemis wasn't one to steal away a basic teenager's right to use the internet. She was looking over a certain article on falcons which she had discovered and found mildly interesting through a certain innovation named Google.   
"Bianca, Lady Artemis is calling for you. “The voice of Thalia Grace startled the younger girl off her hammock and onto the deerskin flooring. "Hey, you okay in there?'  
Bianca groaned how she could become so clumsy when she was near Thalia, she had no idea.  
She was a hunter for crying out loud!  
"I'm fine, I'm coming."  
Getting off the floor and dusting off her silver gown, she collected her fallen laptop and placed it beside her bed, where she usually stores it. Unzipping her tent, she stepped out into the cool Canadian air and met with the daughter of Zeus. Thalia, being the eternal rebel, she is, instead of wearing her silver nightgown, she was clad in a pitch-black tank top and pajama shorts. Her breath hitched, the way the tight cloth clung to her silken skin was incredibly alluring to Bianca.  
"You sure you're okay, Bi?" The girl mutely nodded, still completely lost within Thalia's electric blue eyes.  
Finally, snapping herself out of her Thalia-induced trance, she made her way towards Artemis' tent, bidding farewell to the daughter of Zeus.  
"My Lady? “Bianca heard some scuffling come from within the tent.  
"Come in Bianca."  
The daughter of Hades unzipped the entrance of Artemis' tent and entered her large bare feet sunk into the soft, velvety flooring. Artemis was once again on her hammock, but beside her was what appeared to be a golden, female deer- no a hind. It was enormous compared to a regular deer, with golden antlers like a stag and hooves of bronze, and Bianca knew exactly what it was, Nico's mythomagic cards were certainly useful in certain situations. It was the Ceryneian Hind, one of Lady Artemis' sacred animals.  
When the animal noticed Bianca, it ran away into the shadows, fading away from the tent.  
"Excellent, you have arrived."  
Artemis got off her sleeping arrangement and brushed her silver gown that was not dissimilar to the one Bianca was currently wearing.  
"Let's get down to business, shall we? I'll be sending you off to meet a couple of my former hunters."  
"Former?" Bianca postulated.  
"Artemis nodded. "Yes, Hemithea and Josephine. They are ex-hunters of mine, who had fallen in love with one another. The situation they had faced nearly fifty some years ago is not entirely different from yours."  
Bianca grew nervous at the mention of ex-hunters, was Artemis going to tell her what kind of brutal punishment she had given those two girls in the past to dissuade Bianca from following her heart?  
Artemis scoffed, "Do not fret dear, please allow me to complete my explanation."  
Bianca nodded, although her nerves weren't entirely pacified.  
"Oh, where do I start? Hemithea was born in the ancient times, as a princess of Naxos under the name Molpadia, along with her two sisters - Parthenos and Rhoeo, the latter of whom was one of my idiot brother's lovers. Their father, king Staphylus was a demigod son of Dionysus, and was said to inherit all of his divine parent's worst traits; he frequently abused his power over his family, throwing outbursts of rage over the smallest of details."  
Bianca nodded, not entirely sure where Artemis was going with the tale.  
"One day, one of Staphylus's finest wine amphorae was found drunken king, enraged ordered Molpadia and Parthenos executed. Terrified, the sisters ran towards the cliff-side, and threw themselves into the sea, begging to me for mercy and rescue. Instead, it was Apollo who saved them, his egotistical brain mishearing that the sisters asking for his help, instead of mine. He sacrificed a portion of his own divine essence to turn Molpadia and Parthenos into minor goddesses. Sometime later both sisters followed their dream and joined the Hunters of Artemis. During her service there, Hemithea met and fell in love with her fellow Huntress, Josephine."  
Bianca gasped.  
"Both decided to part their ways with me on good terms twenty years ago, and live their regained mortal life together in the Waystation, a refuge for demigods, monsters and Hunters of Artemis where they could take shelter if needed. It is located above the Union Station in Indianapolis."  
Bianca frowned. "Is that, like another camp?"  
Artemis shook her head. "Simply a refuge, an outpost if you will. A secret one, mind you, I have kept it hidden from both the Camp Half-Blood, and the rest of the Olympians. If father finds it, and see I had spared those huntresses, while I am not entirely sure what he would do, it is better for me to stay safe, rather than sorry for endangering the lives of all who go there."  
Bianca nodded, figuring out what Artemis was trying to say.  
"You want me to meet with them?"  
Artemis nodded, "You shall leave alone at daybreak, and my hind will take you there and back before sundown."  
Bianca nodded, grateful that Artemis hadn't decided to punish her for falling in love with Thalia.  
"I trust that you have much to glean from those two. They are wise beyond their years. Say hello to their daughter, Georgie for me, I haven't spoken to her in months and I'm sure she'll love a word from me. You are dismissed. Rest up; you have a long day ahead of dreams, Bianca."  
Bianca smiled, "Goodnight milady."  
The daughter of Hades retired to her tent, her thoughts encompassed by one thing, and one thing only, Thalia Grace.  
At least… that was before the dreams happened…

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Chapter 57: Reflection  
________________________________________  
The first thing Thalia noticed was that she was no longer snug in her cot. She stood at the edge of a glimmering scene of a lake. Tall grass, swaying steadily in the wind and streetlights filling the surrounding landscape. Beyond that – forest then skyscrapers. A mixture of illustrious quacks and distant car horns filled her senses. She tried looking further around but her body refused to conform to the will of her mind.  
Her eyes stilled at the lake; its waters - red tinged from the lowering sun - cleared into a reflection.  
It was herself. At least - It would be her.  
Her hair was just near as she remembered it, short and choppy, but it seemed to have grown out a bit. The next feature she noticed was her eyes. Piercing electric blue eyes stared back at her from the water. Her vision dropped lower, onto her lips.  
Was she wearing lipstick?  
That struck her surprised. She couldn't remember the last time she had even owned makeup, let alone the last time she had worn any. She wasn't the type of girl who'd wear such things on her face.  
Speaking about her face, she looked pretty much exactly the same as what she remembered looking as, not counting her hair of course. Disregarding that detail, she continued to train her sight downwards and onto her choice of clothing. She was surprisingly wearing a dress, something she thought she wouldn't be caught dead wearing.  
Fortunately, it was black…  
The fabric clung to her curves, accentuating her figure, making Thalia slightly blush. She didn't mean to brag or anything, but she looked downright sexy!   
Thalia wondered why she was all dressed up, and more importantly, how had anyone managed to convince her to wear a freaking dress. It seemed as though her questions would be answered soon as her musings were soon interrupted by light footsteps that arose behind her.  
Thalia's face forcibly smiled at the figure who appeared behind her in wavering image in the water. What was presented to her was probably going to be imprinted in her memory for all of eternity.  
Before her was probably the most beautiful woman she had ever laid her eyes on. The woman looked about as old as her dream-self. Mid to late teenage.  
Her piercing, deep obsidian eyes shone with mirth as they gazed into Thalia's own blue orbs on the waterside. She had long, silky black hair that grew down to the small of her back. Woven into them was a silver tiara which glittered in the dim light of the room they were in. Her olive-like skin wasn't unblemished, but instead was riddled with small scars, but they only served to enhance her illustrious beauty. Her pale skin was in stark contrast with the rest of her dark features. She wore a dark purple dress that hugged her body in just the right way. She also wore black heels, but they weren't too high. In fact, the girl was only slightly taller than herself.  
"Thalia, you ready?" The girl had an expression of pure, unadulterated love. Thalia couldn't avert her eyes from the strange mystery girl that stood before her.  
Her voice spoke up of its own accord, "Yes Bianca, just another moment. I just need a little longer."  
Thalia wanted to widen her eyes. The absolute beauty standing in front of her was Bianca di Angelo! Now that her identity was revealed, Thalia couldn't deny the similarities she could find to the Bianca she remembered. The eyes and skin, for example could be unmistakable.  
Questions blazed themselves through her mind: Why was Bianca wearing Zoe's lieutenant tiara. Has something happened to the daughter of Atlas? Even if that was the case, why was Bianca the lieutenant? Hadn't she left the hunt because of the great prophecy? Then again, the girl looked much older, so perhaps she had joined the hunters again once the prophecy had come to pass?  
Thalia felt a small prickle in the deep recesses of her mind, her fatal flaw, no doubt. Why wasn't she chosen to be lieutenant after Zoe?  
Thalia wanted to shake her head to clear her mind of such thoughts. She should be happy for the girl before her, not in the least bit envious.  
Her train of thought was broken by the absolutely stunning daughter of Hades before her, which hugged her from behind. Bianca's long slender arms roped away Thalia's form warmly.  
"You ready now? I'm sure Percy and Zoe are waiting as well."  
Percy and Zoe? That would mean that Zoe was still alive, what was she doing with Percy...  
Thalia blanched.  
Oh.  
That's why Bianca had the tiara. Zoe wasn't dead... She was very much alive... With Percy.  
Thalia desperately wanted to speak up and ask the other girl what she was getting ready for, but all she could do was smile at the girl and nod. Her black hair bounced up and down as her head bobbed.  
Bianca chuckled, pulling at Thalia.  
"Come on! Our date is going to be the best one yet!" the daughter of Hades exclaimed as Thalia's still body gave way and was pulled along onto the path. Now that she got a look around, she was able to make out they were in Central Park. But that wasn't the focus of her attention.  
Thalia's mind raced. Did she say date? Date? Wait, was she dating Bianca?  
Last time Thalia checked she wasn't gay but…  
And weren't they hunters? Wasn't love - like - forbidden or something?  
But more importantly, was she actually a homosexual?  
The more the daughter of Zeus thought about it, the less insane it sounded. In fact, she could almost picture herself in this very same position in the future… With Bianca...  
Wait, that would make Bianca a homosexual too!  
Thalia began to feel lightheaded as blood began to rush to her cheeks.  
She… Wasn't entirely averse to the idea of liking the daughter of Hades. Thalia had never thought of Bianca that way but now that her mind was forced onto the subject...  
Was it possible? Sure, in the dreamscape she was in, everything seemed to be all fine and dandy, but what about the real world? Would Bianca think less of her if Thalia told her about the beginnings of the crush that she began to harbor inside her?  
What would Artemis say? Would she be okay with it? Would she be mad?  
Bianca kissed her on the cheek. "You alright in there?"  
Bianca playfully knocked on Thalia's forehead.  
All the emotions playing about in her head was making her head spin.  
No, it wasn't only that. Thalia felt a wave of nausea hit her.  
She shut her eyes tight, hoping that the feeling would go away.  
When she finally felt the feeling dissipate, she opened her eyes. Except, she was no longer in… wherever she was… She didn't really know where she was.  
________________________________________  
Thalia looked around. She had full control over her actions this time.  
She tried to walk around, hoping to regain her bearings as to what was going on around her. She seemed to be in a dungeon of sorts… No… She was in a maze.  
Thalia frantically looked around, hoping to find something that would clue her in as to what was happening.  
She heard the scuffle of footsteps, turning around, she was met with four figures.  
The first person she noticed was Bianca. She looked about the same as what Thalia remembered before she fell asleep. Not the potential future version of the girl she had witnessed moments before.  
Beside her was… herself. The other Thalia stood beside Bianca, occasionally glancing at the two other companions along with them.  
They were Nico and Grover, both who were lagging behind, while letting the girls with the hunter training lead them.  
________________________________________  
She scene suddenly began to shift, Thalia was at camp half blood. A battle seemed to be going on.  
Monsters and campers were clashing, metal striking flesh, claws striking skin. It was a massacre. Blood and gold dust flew in all directions as Thalia could do nothing but watch on in mute horror.  
________________________________________  
The scene began to shift yet again, this time she was with the hunters in a forest somewhere. Phoebe led the group. They were hunting for something.  
________________________________________  
The scene shifted, Thalia was stood before a boy with short blonde hair and electric blue eyes.  
________________________________________  
The scene shifted again, she was with the hunters again, but this time they were in a city. Manhattan.  
Around them, as far as the eye could see were the lifeless forms of mortals.  
Thalia heard an ominous chuckle. A cold presence breathed down her shoulder.  
"Prepare yourself half-blood."  
________________________________________  
The girl awoke with a cold sweat. Adrenaline coursed through her veins. She looked around herself.  
It was still dark out. Thalia leaned back into her pillow, what had happened.  
She could remember the first part of her dream clearly, but nothing after. She knew she had seen something, but she could remember none of it. The one thing she could remember though… Was Bianca di Angelo.  
Red began to grace her cheeks.  
Deciding to save the thoughts for later, Thalia closed her eyes, hoping for a dreamless slumber.  
She almost failed to notice the black pair of eyes that was looking at her near-asleep form.  
Thalia rolled over and her blue, sleepy eyes met with the obsidian orbs of Bianca di Angelo.  
"Oh, Bianca…" Thalia yawned, her mind not working anymore. Nothing crossed her mind about it being weird she had caught her fellow hunter staring at her in her sleep. "Ahh... good … night Bianca," she muttered, before dozing off into a fortunately dreamless slumber.

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Chapter 58: Waystation  
________________________________________  
Bianca had the most peculiar dream that night. It was almost as if it had been a vision into the future.  
In her dream, Bianca was wandering down a desolate path, lined with tall oak trees. It was getting dark. The wind blew her hair.  
She turned a bend and found someone on the edge of the lake. The individual seemed to be peering down onto their own reflection in the lake water before them, the person was clearly a woman, judging by the dark black dress and dark silver heels.  
Bianca glanced down. She herself was outfitted with a similarly slick dress and dark heels. Bianca involuntarily approached the person, only to discover the identity of the one before her.  
"Thalia, you ready?"  
Thalia?! Bianca was surprised at the amount of adoration she held in her voice. Both their eyes stared into each other's, neither willing to break contact.  
"Yes Bianca, just another moment. I just need a little longer," the daughter of Zeus murmured. Her arms moved on its own accord, wrapping itself around the body of Thalia.  
"You ready now? I'm sure Percy and Zoe are waiting as well."  
Bianca had wondered what Percy and Zoe were doing together, but she filed away the thoughts for later. For now, her attention was solely focused on the beauty that stood before her.  
After a heartbeat, Bianca unwrapped herself from Thalia's form.  
The daughter of Zeus smiled at the girl hesitantly before nodding. Her black hair bounced up and down as her head bobbed.  
Bianca chuckled, pulling at Thalia.  
"Come on! Our date is going to be the best one yet!" the daughter of Hades exclaimed as Thalia's still body gave way and was pulled along onto the path. Now that she got a look around, she was able to make out they were in Central Park.  
But that wasn't the focus of her attention.  
Bianca's mind raced. Did she say date? Date? Wait, was she dating Thalia?  
The daughter of Hades had felt a lump in her throat. What was this, some fantasy that her mind had concocted?  
Thalia looked beautiful in the fading light...  
Bianca hadn't had any time to ponder about the topic because she was forcefully pulled away from the dreamscape. She stared at the ceiling above her and squirmed in her knit, as she had woken up in an awkward position.  
Bianca was almost disappointed that she had awoken from her slumber.  
She rolled over to face the object of her desires, who laid on the other side of their shared tent.  
The daughter of Zeus stirred, rolling over to face the daughter of Hades.  
Their eyes met for the smallest of moments, but the seed had been set.  
Bianca's obsidian orbs stared deeply into the striking blue ones that belonged to Thalia.  
Bianca felt her breath hitch. She froze, like a deer at headlights.  
"Oh, Bianca…" Thalia yawned, "Ah… good … night Bianca," she muttered, before dozing off.  
The daughter of Hades stayed frozen. She hadn't expected the other girl to catch her staring at her sleeping form.  
Bianca reddened deeply, she had no idea how she was going to explain why she had been staring at her to Thalia.  
That was when Bianca remembered that she would be going to meet Hemithea and Josephine. The daughter of Hades wanted to sigh in relief. She wouldn't have to face the other girl for a day at the very least.  
Eventually she fell back asleep, her thoughts revolving around what she was going to expect from the two ex-hunters that Artemis had recommended for her to talk to.  
________________________________________  
Bianca was awoken by the knocking on the wooden posts that supported the tent she shared with Thalia. The hunters all had to share their tent with another hunter, the reason for this wasn't entirely clear to Bianca but she supposed that it made packing up the camp much easier, or it inspired a sisterhood between the hunters, making them like family to each other.  
Zoe shared with Phoebe.  
Rachel shared with Pacifica.  
Arya shared with Juliet.  
Daphne shared with Mia.  
Cheryl shared with Siva  
And finally, she shared with Thalia.   
Percy and Artemis got their own tents. Percy, because he was a boy, and Artemis because she didn't want to disturb any of the hunters late into the night when she had to leave the hunters to fulfill her duties of riding the moon chariot around the world. That and because she was a goddess and the leader of the hunters; it wouldn't be appropriate for her to share her tent with any of the other hunters.  
Her musings were broken by another bout of knocking.  
Bianca sleepily rolled off her bed and unzipped her tent.  
Standing outside was Artemis, beside the goddess was her golden hind.  
"Good. You're up. You should leave now, before any of the others can wake up." The goddess shoved a backpack into Bianca's hands. "Here you go, food and water, along with an extra pair of clothes."  
Bianca nodded, rubbing her eyes, to take the drowsiness away.  
"Yes, my lady."  
Artemis smiled at her, "Do not think I'm sending you away Bianca. I simply want to let you know the dangers of falling in love with one of the hunters. Especially considering that you will have to leave the hunt once the summer begins.  
The daughter of Hades nodded, understanding what Artemis was trying to say.  
"Go quickly now. I will tell Thalia that you have gone to visit Nico and will return by sundown."  
________________________________________  
Bianca could barely observe her surroundings as lush landscapes whirred past her while she hung on to Artemis' sacred animal for deer life.  
They crossed forests and mountains at blinding speeds before slowing down a flatter plain, where a large metropolis had spawned out from nowhere. Don't ask her how, but she had been able to catch the name 'Indianapolis' on a road sign before they entered in.  
The hind eventually led the daughter of Hades across the intersection from Lucas Oil Stadium to a large ornate building. The hind skittered over the abandoned railway lines – the large warehouse shaped building – Bianca suspected must've been some kind of Railway depot.  
Carved in granite under the rose windows were the words UNION STATION.  
Before Artemis' sacred hind reached the main entrance however it veered right and stopped in front of a brick wall.  
"Umm, that's not the door," Bianca said, stumbling onto the ground. The journey, while she hadn't run it herself was still exhausting. At least an hour although looking up at the sky, the sun was definitely higher in the sky than previously.  
The hind just continued to stare at the bricks in front of it.  
"What's so interesting about that wall?" Bianca asked, before reaching forward at the section of the wall. At her touch, the wall hummed to life and golden lines shot from the ground to trace the outline of a doorway in the wall. Mortar cracked and dissolved. Bricks fell down into some kind of chute, before being replaced with a newly cut-out doorway, which swung backwards. Inside, a dark passage revealed a narrow chute that slanted upwards like a chimney with metal rungs leading up.  
Bianca stepped back in first surprise and then amazement. The hind however just continued on, as if magical doorways appearing out of random walls was a daily occurrence.  
"Hold on, wait up!" Bianca shouted, as the hind became enveloped in the shadows. When she entered, the door closed behind her with a thud, which gave her chills. Then, lights began to flicker into life along the walls. About twenty feet up the ramp, a door opened on the left. Inside, she found a huge lounge area and kitchen. There at the counter was an elderly woman – maybe in her sixties with grayed hair and weathered skin looked up from the midst of chopping tomatoes.  
The woman looked up with a calm expression. She studied Bianca to a count of five, before letting out a bright smile; her face gave a warm, welcoming sensation to Bianca. Her eyes flashed like moonlight on water. She wore a dark gray tee with an apron above it. Her gray hair was pulled back into a loose bun.  
"Well, hello there!" the woman smiled, setting her knife down and cleaning off her hands. "You must be Bianca, I must admit, I wasn't expecting you until another half hour. Brunch isn't quite ready yet!"  
"Uh, hi..." Bianca stammered.  
"Hemithea. Emmie for short."  
Bianca bowed, awkwardly, unsure of what to do.  
The woman waved her off. "I'm not that important, honey. And don't worry about formalities, we don't follow such rules at Waystation. Call me Emmie, and this is Waystation. Make yourself at home. Georgie and Jo should be here soon, I had just sent them on a few errands. We can… ah, discuss over a healthy meal."  
Bianca looked at her. "Uh, thanks."  
Emmie turned to Artemis' hind which jumped around eagerly at the sight of Emmie. "Oh, who's been a good girl! You are, you are! Go to the roof, I'm sure Heloise and Abelard miss you, why don't you run up on the roof and play?"  
The hind jumped around excitedly at the thought before racing down one of the many hallways. Emmie laughed. "Lady Artemis' hind is one of Waystation's Gryphon's best friends. They'll be happy, playing," she explained.  
Bianca wasn't entirely sure about what she would do with the information so she wandered around, to let Emmie get back to her preparations. The lounge was illuminated with an ambiance of sunlight, which filtered in through pink laced curtains onto hardwood floor of what looked to be a child's room. Couches lined with fluffy pillows and lounge chairs circled around a pair of coffee tables and warmed by granite fireplace.  
Bianca took position to take a seat before Emmie shouted, "Wait!"  
Bianca looked at the older woman in surprise.  
"Waystation, please disarm the traps in the living room." The building hummed and Emmie looked at Bianca with an apologizing expression. "Sorry about that, the patron of this station is... very much into everything traps. She has the place always on ready to capture any perpetrators.  
Bianca looked at the chair she had been about to sit in, and decided maybe she'd avoid touching any furniture until she had to.  
"Can I have a look around?" she asked. Emmie nodded. "Sure. Just watch out for Agamethus. He's this bright orange ghost guy, he's sort of Waystation's overseer who keeps an eye on the corners of the house I sometimes forget to check. He'll leave you alone as long as you keep you Hunter's parka on."  
Bianca wandered around for the next ten or so minutes.  
The first room she found was this workshop, which was outfitted with walls of different tools and various machinery. Bianca found a band saw which was running by itself as a long slab of wood was fed via conveyor. Work tables with table saws, lathes, kilns, forges and other machinery filled the room. The room was also decorated with various projects, one could be distinguished as some sort of enhanced bicycle. Sadly, Bianca wasn't exactly a mechanical enthusiast, so her knowledge of machinery stopped there.  
The next was an Infirmary, which she was much more knowledgeable in. The walls were lined with fully stocked supply cabinets with medicine, surgical tools and potion ingredients. A hospital bed laid in the center and had built in computer thingies that listed out medical data. Racks of healing herbs dried against the wall. In the back corner, were glass habitats of various animals including live snakes and frogs.  
She was about to look further down the hall she had wandered down, when she heard other voices, which she assumed were the aforementioned Georgie and Josephine come back from wherever they had been. Bianca walked back to the kitchen/lounge to find two new people.  
The larger of the two was a muscular, older woman outfitted with a leather suit and metal visors. The other was a younger girl – no older than five who wore a baby blue blouse and sweat shorts which were smothered with dried green paint. She had short brown hair and crazy looking dark eyes.  
"Hi! Who are you?" she asked. "I am Georgina!"  
The girl extended her hand to shake Bianca's  
"I'm Bianca," Bianca introduced herself, accepting Georgie's small hand into her's. "I'm here to visit... umm..." Bianca looked up. "Your mommies?"  
Georgina looked at Jo and then Emmie who were both watching humorously at Georgina's antics.  
"Mommy Jo, is dat true?" she tugged on Jo's hand, who looked down at her appreciatively. "Yes, Georgie. Why don't you clean up, I'm sure Hem's almost finished.”?  
Emmie hummed in agreement.  
"Okay," Georgie grinned, with a toothy smile before skipping away.  
Bianca looked at the two women and the meal on the table. There was a platter of roasted ham with smelled absolutely delightful. Dishes of mashed potatoes and corn and warm – fresh out of the oven – bread, laid next to salads (with the earlier mentioned tomatoes).  
"So, Bianca…Artemis tells me that you like one of her hunters," Jo started when they sat.  
Well… That was blunt…  
"I'm not sure," Bianca confessed. "It's just that when I'm with Thalia, I never know what to do. I freeze up and melt down at the same time…"  
The two women looked at one another and then focused back onto her with sad eyes.  
"What poetry. Sounds romantic," Emmie said.  
Jo looked at Bianca with a sympathetic gaze. "This Thalia girl really got ya, huh?"  
Bianca shrugged, blushing.  
Emmie chewed her lip. "Love. Love is a dangerous game. I'm sure Artemis has advised against it.  
Bianca nodded hesitantly.  
"How long have you two known each other?"  
"A few months."  
Jo grunted. "At least it's been given time to be considered."  
"Oh hush," Emmie told Jo. "Now Bianca, what Jo's trying to say, you need time to consider these emotions. Giving up immortality, that's no small issue. Neither is love."  
Bianca paused to consider the words.  
Emmie sighed. "I'm just horrible at explaining these things."  
Jo nodded enthusiastically, earning a hurtful gaze from Emmie.  
"Whmt?" Jo mumbled with a mouthful of food.  
"Sometimes I wonder… Never mind. How about I start with a story."  
"Story time?" Georgina hollered as she jumped onto her seat at the table.  
Emmie nodded. "It all started thousands of years ago. You see I used to be a princess in the kingdom of Naxos so many years ago."  
"My mommy's old," Georgina 'whispered' loudly.  
"One day," Emmie said, ignoring Georgina's comment, "My sister and I were playing in the castle gardens. My father was very drunken that day you see and knocked over his favorite bottle of wine. He looked out his window and we were the first two faces he saw. He blames us for breaking his wine."  
Bianca nodded, "Yeah, I know. Lady Artmeis told me last night before she sent me here."  
Emmie smiled at the younger girl, "Of course she did. Oh well, leaves me with less to talk about."  
"I lived thousands of years as a hunter. Bianca, I cannot lie when I say being a huntress is a complete honor. Many would enjoy the long lives of glory and company it comes with. It wasn't until the 1940s when we picked up Josephine."  
Josephine waved halfheartedly. "For years we became friends. It wasn't for at least… ten years before it became more?"  
"Eleven, Jo."  
"Yes, eleven."  
Emmie looked at Bianca thoughtfully. "I wish you brought Thalia, I could've more easily evaluate the situation. But I guess you have yet to discover Thalia's perspective, huh?  
Bianca shook her head.  
Emmie tapped her chin. "Love is a wonderful gift. Being a hunter, you lose that part of life. You can love your sisters, as if they were blood at least, but a romantic connection? That is something Artemis has chosen to deter from, but it is a life that none others can have. I would say make sure the connection is true first, before you throw your life away."  
Jo nodded in agreement.  
"It took me thousands of years to find this idiot," Hemmie peeked at Jo, "but it was worth it. Just be careful about choosing, huh? Love is definitely worth it, and Artemis has turned a blind eye before, but be careful."  
"Okay," Bianca croaked. "But what about us being both girls?"  
"Both girls?!" Emmie and Jo both exclaimed.  
Bianca nodded.  
"We faced a few problems in society at first," Jo admitted. "But like Lady Artemis, society has forgotten to scorn the idea. You live in the twenty-first century, you'll be fine."  
"You mean, it's normal?"  
Emmie shrugged. "It's still a social norm for romance, you know, boy meets girl etc., etc., but for the most part, no one will look at the two of you that weirdly."  
"We haven't had that much trouble in the last decade. But then again, the neighbors around here are really kind," Jo added.  
Georgina spoke in agreement.  
"If you ever want children, adoptions an option," Emmie inputted. Georgina waved at Bianca with a grin.  
"That's meeeeee."  
"I don't know..." Bianca said.  
"Honestly, none of us do. Love is a difficult thing. The only thing that makes it clear is time."  
Bianca sighed.

________________________________________  
Chapter 59: Rude  
________________________________________  
Percy was eating a simple lunch with the hunters which consisted of bread with olives, figs, cheese and smoked salmon (Which Percy refused to eat) that Mia had caught off the coast of Lake Ontario. Percy sat with Zoe to his right and Phoebe to his left, the latter of whom was vacuuming her food into the endless void she called her stomach.  
Not that Percy was doing any different. Somehow, he was able to maintain a casual conversation with Zoe, despite his eating habit. They mainly spoke of just pointers on how to aim forward with a bow and arrow.  
Suddenly there was a flash of golden. It was Artemis' golden hind. Bianca had returned from wherever she had been.  
The daughter of Hades climbed off the hind and locked her gaze with Thalia for the briefest of moments before her vision trimmed back towards Artemis. The goddess smiled at the daughter of Hades.  
"How was your visit to the underworld Bianca?"  
Bianca reddened for some reason, "I- It was fine my lady."  
Artemis rolled her eyes, "I hope you had fun, now sit, eat with us."  
The girl nodded nervously, taking a seat beside Thalia, who had kept a space vacant for the girl for if she returns before lunchtime. Bianca reached over, grabbing a loaf of bread and a porcelain plate from the pile on the middle of the table. Next, she reached for the figs and cheese that was off to her right. When she reached for the salmon, her palm brushed across Thalia's breasts, which caused both the teens to redden.  
"I-I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to!"  
Thalia laughed, waving her off, "It's fine Bianca, here, let me help."  
The daughter of Zeus uncharacteristically reached over to the salmon and handed the bowl to Bianca, who smiled at her coyly. With that, regular lunch continued, and Percy directed his attention back to Zoe.  
"Hey," Zoe whispered to him, "Is it just me, or does something seem off to you about the way Bianca is interacting with Thalia."  
Percy concealed his grin within the piece of bread he was holding up to his lips. He recalled that one 'vision' he had when he dreamed of a Christmas celebrated in his mom's house. Bianca and Thalia had arrived hand-in-hand and had been leaning on each other when they were on the couch. Perhaps these visions of the future that he was getting was a sign for the things to come. Of course, he couldn't become reckless believing that his future was set in stone and everyone would get a happy ending judging from his dreams.  
Percy didn't notice Artemis' ears perk up.  
"Yeah. I've noticed it too. You don't think that, maybe-" Percy didn't complete his question, but from the look of understanding that appeared on Zoe's expression, Percy could tell that Zoe understood what he was implying.  
"Maybe…. Maybe I might have to talk to Lady Artemis about it later."  
Percy barely heard the moon goddess' soft chuckle at that, but it was definitely definable.  
The two returned their focus to their food, fining away the conversation for a later date. A part of Percy's attention fell on the other two children of the big three among them.  
Clearly none of the other hunters were all that curious about what the daughter of Hades had been doing, but Thalia seemed to show some interest.  
"Why'd you leave so early? I'm sure Nico could have waited for few hours to meet his sister."  
Bianca choked on her food, so Artemis answered for her. "I sent her there early so that she could return soon. I have some training sessions planned and Bianca is going to be needed to complete some of them."  
Percy could have been misunderstood something, but he could have sworn that Bianca sent Artemis a grateful look that the goddess just waved off.  
It took another uneventful five minutes for the hunters to complete their lunch.  
"Alright hunters. I think it's time we had a little training done so disperse and meet me in the archery ring in two minutes."  
Everyone averted their eyes as Artemis flashed out of the dining area.  
Phoebe grabbed the plates while Daphne grabbed the leftovers, both entering the dedicated kitchen-tent before leaving empty handed.  
The hunters made it to Artemis before they two-minute timer was up, fortunately.  
"Alright. Let's begin with some warm ups. Percy, Bianca, Thalia, Zoe, stay here. The rest of you keep running."  
The hunters complied.  
"Alright. Thalia, you're with Zoe. Zoe, you're going to practice your speed. Thalia hit her with all you've got. Lightening included."  
Thalia grinned maniacally while Zoe gulped in apprehension.  
"Percy, Bianca you're going to be working on speed too, but attacking and defending speed, dexterity, not movement speed," Artemis gave Percy a pointed look, "Agility."  
The two nodded, Percy uncapped Riptide and Bianca unsheathed her hunting knives.  
"Percy should be familiar with this one. The two of you have five minutes to defeat the other person. Percy, seeing as you have more experience than her, keep your bracelets on for this one."  
Percy nodded.  
"You have five minutes…" Artemis paused, "Starting now!"  
The goddess flashed away, leaving the cousins face to face.  
"Good luck Bianca!" Percy smirked at the girl, "You'll need it."  
Bianca growled.  
'Perfect,' he thought. His plan worked.  
The daughter of Hades charged at Percy, both knives drawn wide, leaving herself completely exposed.  
Percy ducked under her swing, landing a swift uppercut on the girl's chest, sending her backward coughing.  
"Do you want me to go easy on you, little girl?" Bianca snorted at Percy's taunting, charging again, this time doing a better job of protecting her mid-section, but leaving her legs completely exposed and unguarded.  
Percy backstepped away from her stab, swerving to the left and ducking under her outstretched arm, pivoting on his left heel, he swung out his right leg, sweeping the girl off her feet.   
"This isn't the time for amateur hour Bianca! I expected better from you!"  
Bianca got to her feet, brushing the dirt off her parka, she attempted to charge again, but was stopped by Artemis.  
"Alright that is enough, Percy wins."  
Percy grinned cockily, while Bianca glared at him.  
"Percy cut the act now."  
The smirk dropped and Percy gained an apologetic look on his face, "Hey Bianca, I'm sorry for how I spoke to you."  
The girl refused to meet his eyes.  
"Look at him Bianca."  
The girl half-heartedly looked at the son of Poseidon.  
"Artemis asked me to do it, I swear. She wanted to see how you would react to people taunting you."  
The girl stared blankly at the boy.  
"It's true. And it was just as I suspected. You get frustrated far too easily and head into a battle without thinking and leaving yourself open."  
Bianca sunk her head in shame.  
"But of course, that isn't the point of this training exercise. Percy should now work on more… constructive techniques that aim to boost your strengths. Guard your weaknesses."  
Bianca nodded, but looked at the boy with a certain sense of nervousness.  
"Hey, I said I'm sorry alright," Percy smiled at the girl, "Come at me now."  
Bianca bit her lip but approached him, picking up her fallen knives.  
Without pause, she charged at Percy, probably expecting him to berate her again.  
"Stop right there."  
Bianca froze, her position remained in stasis as Percy approached her and placed his open palms on both of Bianca's clenched fists.  
"You're too open, you need a better defensive stance."  
He stood before her and took his own hunter's stance, pretending that Riptide in his right hand and its cap was the two blades which Bianca wielded. The daughter of Hades tried her best at copying what he was doing, only to fumble in her steps and falling to the floor.  
Percy approached her, "Come on, get up. I'll help you."  
Bianca looked at him with tearful eyes.  
"You'll have this down by the end of the day. I promise."  
Bianca gave him a watery smile at his optimism.

________________________________________  
Chapter 60: Water  
________________________________________  
If nothing else, at the very least Bianca could call herself a somewhat quick learner.  
She swung her blade once more. Sparks flew, as her blade of black-iron met with her foe's blade of pale bronze.  
"You're getting better at this Bianca." Her opponent swerved to his right, narrowly avoiding another of her quick swipes. His sea green eyes glinted with excitement as he swung at her again, making her flinch under his vicious strikes.  
Bianca growled with frustration.  
It had been nearly two entire months since she had begun training with Percy. Yet, she hadn't yet been able to land a solid hit on him when he didn't have his golden bracelets on.  
Even when he had the weights on, they were not even close to evenly matched. His surplus years of being a demigod granted him far greater experience that her measly few months. He was still faster, stronger and more skilled than her - and most other hunters in fact - when it came to using blades and close quarters combat. The hunters though could still curb stomp him when it came to anything from more than three feet away from the enemy, archery for example; the son of Poseidon was still quite hopeless at the art of using a bow and arrow, something the other hunters loved to flaunt over his head.  
But, like most things in life, there was a silver lining to it all.  
Bianca gripped her Stygian Iron blade tighter, it's raven blade pulsating with violet energy.  
Her sword was pretty darn awesome!   
The blade was a gift from her father, who had given it to her about a week into her training when she had gone to the underworld to visit her little brother. Although it was very much against the ancient laws for her father to have Nico living in his palace, he simply got around that fact by 'claiming' that it was, in fact Persephone who was looking after her step-son and not Hades, himself looking after him. The goddess of springtime, while not exactly friendly with her husband's two illegitimate children, seemed warm enough to not murder them outright.  
The daughter of Hades swung again at her cousin before her with vigor. The boy simply batted her iron blade away with the side of his own, his golden bracelets gleaning under the midday sun which poured overhead.  
"You aren't putting enough power into your swings Bianca! You need to put some more effort into your swings."  
Getting her teeth, Bianca swung again, putting all her effort into the swing. The boy simply sidestepped away from the blade, shaking his head disapprovingly.  
"Now, you are focusing too much and power and none on technique. Pay attention to your opponent and find an opening. Do not simply rely on technique or strength alone. You have to find a balance between the two."  
Nodding at her friend and mentor, Bianca adjusted her stance. It was one which drew great inspiration from Percy's own, albeit slightly modified to adjust to her smaller frame and the extended reach of the sword (which was half a foot longer than Riptide).  
Suddenly, Bianca heard a crackle of lightening.  
Groaning internally, Bianca leapt off the ground, Percy not too far behind, avoiding the spark of electricity that the object of her affection had thrown towards the two of them.  
"Getting rusty Thals? You missed?"  
Growling at the son of Poseidon's taunt, Thalia fired off another stream of lightening, knocking the boy onto the floor. (Although Bianca had a theory that Percy let's Thalia fry him occasionally.)  
"Did I miss again kelp head?"  
Percy moaned with pain. "Nope, y-you have impeccable aim Thalia."  
Bianca chuckled at their mild banter.  
"Come on, Lady Artemis called the two of you for lunch."  
Bianca nodded, helping the son of Poseidon back onto his feet.  
________________________________________  
The hunters were seated in a fairly regular arrangement when the three demigods arrived at the dining table, Artemis at the head, with Zoe across from her, Phoebe to her left and a bunch of free seats to her right. Percy quickly scrambled to his usual spot beside Zoe and Bianca, in turn, followed him to her usual spot beside him and Thalia came next, seating herself beside Bianca.  
Bianca glanced left, towards Percy and Zoe. The two of them had gotten very close in the three months that Percy had been a part of the hunt. Since the entire lake incident, their bond only seemed to grow stronger. A thin tendril of water danced across Zoe's coppery skin, her control over the element having grown stronger under the tutelage of Percy Jackson.  
Bianca could only stare in rapt attention as Percy added his own watery string, braiding itself into Zoe's tendril, both performing an intricate dance to a melody only heard inside the heads of the respective hydro kinetic puppet masters.  
A small smile played across both of their faces as the two coils of water began forming helices around each other, swirling and twirling slowly to an unheard beat.   
Bianca was finally broken out of her trance like state by Thalia lightly zapping her on her side, snapping her into attention.  
"Psst. What do you think is up with those two and their water gymnastics?”  
Bianca rolled her eyes, "You don't have to say psst after you've gotten my Attention Thalia."  
The daughter of Zeus shrugged, "Oh well. But seriously though, those two have been practically glued to each other by the hip since Zoe got those water powers of hers."  
Thalia paused, "Oh, that kelp for brains is just showing off now!" she groaned out.  
Bianca glanced back at the son of Poseidon.  
Instead of tendrils of water, the son of Poseidon decided to show off his control over water by fashioning a miniature Zoe Nightshade who held an azure bow in her hands, an arrow knocked and ready, aiming straight for the real Zoe's face.  
The daughter of Atlas' mirthful eyes betrayed her poker face, showing Bianca quite clearly that she was actually quite amused by the boy's antics, not that her deadpan expression would give anything away.  
"Oh, there is definitely something between them."  
Bianca rolled her eyes at Thalia's overzealous mind.  
Surely there wasn't any romantic intentions between the two hunters.  
Surely.

________________________________________  
Chapter 61: Reminisce  
________________________________________  
April 21st, 2013. It had been exactly four months and nine days since he had been sent back in time. Exactly four months since the death of his best friend, Annabeth Chase.  
Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena, head councilor of the Athena Cabin in Camp Half-blood… His first crush… His first love…  
The anniversary was truly bittersweet.  
On one hand, his best friend and crush had lost her very life, but on the other hand two lives had been saved.  
Firstly, his younger cousin and protege, Bianca di Angelo, the sister of one of his closest friends back before he was forcefully thrust into the past, Nico di Angelo.  
The death of the daughter of Hades had been one of his biggest regrets. She had been so young when she had lost her life, a year younger than he was himself. About as old as he was when he found Zeus' Master-bolt. But now - now she was alive and well - still a hunter of Artemis and was now his responsibility.  
For the past three months, he had been training her, making her skilled enough to survive on her own without Artemis or the hunt to guide her. He had taken the younger girl under his wings, and with the guidance of Artemis, began training her to be the most powerful daughter of Hades to have ever lived.  
Bianca was a moderately quick learner, certainly no prodigy, but not a lost cause either. She learned quickly, she picked up a hunter's stance with minimal tutelage and soon adapted the style as her own. With the raven blade that Hades had given her, the lilac trails that followed her blade as she swerved and weaved around the other hunters made her truly a sight to behold.  
Percy didn't hold back on her in the slightest when they sparred to gauge her progress every week. He would spar with her as though she was though she was any other enemy demigod, the only difference being that he corrected her flaws when he spotted them, although he didn't always catch all of them, too lost in the moment to concentrate on such things.  
That, was where Artemis came in, she would point out any mistake Bianca would make, but that was not all, Percy wasn't perfect either, the moon goddess made sure to grill Percy on any mistake he made or missed to point out.  
In the end, both demigods would come out being better combatants by the end of their training - which would be in about a month and a half's time when Bianca would have to spend her summer. Their training would resume when she returned to the hunt at the end of summer.  
And then there was the second life he had saved.  
Zoe Nightshade.  
The daughter of Atlas's timely demise had been his other greatest regret, and in this bittersweet second chance of his, he was blessed by the fates to fix both of these losses.  
But all that had come at a price. This was the anniversary of the fourth month the daughter of Athena had spent in Elysium.  
________________________________________  
It was probably five in the evening when Percy was attacked by the hunters. He was surrounded on all sides by the girls clad in silver, each having their weapons drawn, all aiming at him, Zoe, Thalia and Bianca included.  
"Girls, I really think that this is a bad idea…"  
Percy missed the mischievous glints in all their eyes.  
"No seriously, I have done nothing to deserve this!"  
He attempted to placate them, failing miserably.  
"If you throw any of those at me, I'll sic Horus on you!"  
He tried bluffing his way out of his predicament, his falcon circling around him, high in the sky.  
The hunters did not budge.  
"You really expect those to work? I'm a son of Poseidon for crying out loud!"  
"Oh, we know that Perce. That's why we asked that father of yours to help us out a little."  
And with that, Percy Jackson was pelted with a multitude of water balloons, none of which he could control for whatever reason.  
He prepared his counter attack, he willed the water from a nearby stream into spheres of varied sizes.  
"Girls, I have a weapon and 'm not afraid of using it!"  
He warned, making the spheres hover closer to the hunters.  
He was hit in the back of his head by yet another balloon, startling him out of concentration, making him drop the water he was holding up, resulting in all the spheres crashing down in a harmless cascade that missed all the hunters.  
"Overwhelmed Percy?"  
The son of Poseidon growled at the moon goddess's taunt, turning around he glared at the goddess.  
"I'm sorry, not sorry for this."  
In about ten seconds, the entirety of the hunter's camp was flooded in about ten feet of stream water, with all the hunters and their matron goddess trapped under the deluge, who struggled vainly under his immense control over the water.  
After fifteen seconds of holding the hunters underwater, he released his control over the water, maneuvering it back towards its original course across the woods.  
The hunters lay on the floor, sopping wet and sputtering, coughing and heaving from the sudden influx of water. Artemis, on the other hand hung from a high branch, laughing at the fate of her hunters.  
"I told girls to not try ambushing him, even if you had the help of Poseidon."  
Thalia rolled her eyes, coughing out some more water, she choked out, "You might have won this time kelp head, but you better watch your back the next time…"  
The son of Poseidon simply laughed boisterously.  
His mirth was cut off by an earth rumbling roar that shook silence into the brisk Canadian air.  
The hunters were immediately on guard, their silver bows materializing in their arms. They crouched as they assumed formation.  
Percy yawned, then sighed. He was not in the mood to be messing with monsters right then.  
He popped his blade's cap off, the celestial bronze glittering in the evening shine.  
The first thing he noticed was a single, scaly, reptilian head poking out of the undergrowth.  
Its read iris scanned the girls carefully.  
Another head revealed itself, its ruby orbs locking with Percy's sea green.  
Yet another was revealed.  
Percy sighed, "Alright ladies, who's in the mood to kill a hydra?"  
The three heads roared loudly yet again.  
Percy rolled his eyes, "Yeah yeah, whatever let's just fight already"  
________________________________________

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all, Thanks to everyone who stood by this project up till the end!
> 
> If you want to check out my other work, please head over to fanfiction.net!
> 
> Byee!


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